I now pronounce you miserable
by Karinka-ten
Summary: Sakura is married to Syaoran as a result of an arranged marriage, she wishes they were not married but he is madly in love with her
1. Chapter 1

**I now pronounce you miserable**

**Chapter 1**

Disclaimer: I do not own CCS

"I now pronounce you husband and wife."

It was like a nightmare come to life; Sakura could hardly wait for it to be over. She polished her face with a plastic smile that went hand in hand with the over the top wedding dress that her mother had designed for her. Her hair was a neat ballet bun that only complimented her beautiful face. It was no doubt a perfect wedding, everything you would expect to go wrong at a wedding did not happen. It was just perfect. She was the only thing that stood out, can you imagine, a bride who believes that she does not fit in at her own wedding and nonetheless does not want to be there?

The bridegroom was a perfect gentleman, handsome, well mannered, a blue blood who had shown her nothing but utter kindness from the day he met her. But she despised him; she despised that look in his eyes when he looked at, that hopeful expression. It made her sick to her stomach. He would reach for her hand, and gently pull her closer to him, but she would not hold his hand. She could not look at him, each time she did, tears would form in her eyes and she feared that the tears would ruin her perfect make- up and worse of all that everyone would see, that he would see that she was unhappy. She suppressed all of her emotions, and like a puppet, did everything her parents made her swear to do.

"But you're very young Sakura." He Aunt Muriel told her. The woman was clearly drunk, she had a reputation for not being able to hold her liquor "I'm not that young, I'm 22" Sakura explained.

"Don't you want to have a little more fun, play around, when I was in my twenties I had a different boyfriend is every major city in Japan." She cackled holding the glass of red wine to her lips.

Sakura half smiled, the fake smiled failed to reach her tired eyes.

"Although I must say, Li Syaoran is a handsome guy and he'll take care of you. I just know it; he has so much going for him. That money isn't going to spend itself if you know what I mean. You're so lucky." She laughed even louder and hit Sakura on the shoulder playfully. Sakura recoiled.

"It was nice talking to you." She said walking away.

Her family was shallow, she thought to herself. All they cared about was wealth, her parents were even worse than her Aunt, it's not like their family was poor, and in fact they lived a comfortable life. Her parents were just greedy. Sakura thought.

While she was walking towards the table where her friends were sitting, a strong arm grabbed her forearm, she turned around slowly. It was him, her husband Li Syaoran. He shot her a weary smile then slowly released her shoulder "I'm sorry." He apologized "If I hurt you."

He dropped his hand and looked at her, his face was bright red and he made her very uncomfortable. He had dark brown eyes that looked like they were ready to engulf her.

"Would you like to dance with me?" he asked her warmly "I promise I won't step on your toes."

Sakura did not laugh at what was intended to be a joke.

His gaze lingered as he awaited a reply.

"Sure." She suddenly spoke.

He took her hand and led her to the dance floor. She was awfully quiet, he though himself, too quiet. She hardly spoke to him and it seemed as though she didn't even want him touching her. Such a beautiful girl, she was the epitome of perfection. He had fallen in love the first time he was introduced to her by her parents a month earlier. She was down to earth, kind and interesting, she spoke a lot. Very cute girl, and instantly he knew that she was the one he was destined to marry.

He held her close to him and whispered in her ear "Did I mention you look beautiful, Li Sakura."

She slightly nodded and though in her mind "I'm Kinomoto Sakura." She just wanted to push him away and wail like a child for him calling her that.

"Well I mean it." He didn't know what else to say to her, she made it terribly difficult for him to tell her anything.

"Why are you so quiet?" he finally asked as their feet moved along to the music.

"I'm not quiet." She denied.

He chuckled "You won't speak to me and I can tell you don't like it when I touch you. We're married now, you're going to have to get used to me."

"I know." She muttered.

"You're just telling me what I want to hear." His heart felt like it had been shattered into tiny pieces. He has always been an old fashioned man. His family had for generations followed tradition in everything they did. He had no problem with the idea of an arranged marriage, in fact he praised it. His parents had been arranged to be married and they had lived a happy life together for almost 30 years. He wanted that for himself and he trusted that his parents would help him choose a fine woman as his wife.

As she rested her head on his chest, he wanted to kiss her, so much. He would have to ask for her permission and he had already predicted that her answer would be no.

She rested her head on his shoulder and murmured "Can we just…keep dancing…I'm not in the mood for talking right now."

He sighed, she had just contradicted herself. "Whatever make you happy love."

She could feel everyone watching them as they danced; they were dancing to her favorite love song. But this time, it only made her very. He smelled very good, she could not help but notice and he was gentle.

…

After the wedding, the couple was driven to a 5 star hotel out of town; they were to stay there for a two days before going for their honeymoon. When they reached the hotel room, he opened the door and allowed her to go in first. He didn't know what to expect, the idea of being alone with her suddenly made him nervous.

He closed the door behind him. He awkwardly narrowed his gaze to her; she stood in the middle room. She looked at him and him at her. He walked closer to her, and as he did, he say something that forced him to stop in his tracks, there were tears in her eyes. They soon ran down her cheeks and she put no effort into wiping them away.

"Why are you crying?" he asked looking down at the carpeted floor.

"I'm not….I…" she didn't know what to tell him.

"Don't you love me? You've been so cold." He said to her.

She swallowed hard, he didn't seriously expect her to answer that "I'm just…" she didn't know to explain it to him.

His eyes darkened as he raised them to look at her "Go on, say it, there is nothing you can possibly say that can make me more hurt me than I am already."

"Hurt? Why are you hurt?" she said shocked.

"Because I get the feeling that you don't want to be married to me."

She wiped her tears away, she wanted to speak but the words couldn't come out.

He leaned against the wall "It's our wedding night dammit, we are going to be spending the rest of our lives together." He ran his fingers through his hair frustrated "it's alright though. I do love you Sakura and I do want to make you happy." He said taking a few steps closer to her "I don't care if your reasons for marrying me are not the same."

She took a deep breath and finally spoke "I didn't want this." She told him "A forced marriage."

"Forced?" his eyebrows shot up "No one forced you."

"You wouldn't understand." She told him, she lifted her face.

She picked up the train of her dress and made her way to the bathroom where she locked the door. He could hear her cry. He didn't know what to do.

"Sakura." He loosened the tie of his tuxedo and took off his jacket "I was so sure that you wanted to be married to me." He spoke loud.

He walked to the couch and sat on it. He waited awhile for her to come out of the bathroom but she did not, after 45 minutes and two glasses of brandy he knew she was not going to be coming out. And there was no way she could escape; their room was on floor 22.

He knocked on the door "Are you alright in there?"

"We need to set up some ground rules?"

"Ground rules?" he arched his eyebrow. He chuckled believing that she was joking.

She opened the door. Her face had tear stains. She held a firm expression that gave him shivers down his spine.

"Yes ground rules." She said strictly.

"Like…."

She took a deep breath "You are forbidden from telling me that you love me. We will not touch, unless it is in public and appropriate."

He watched her; he could not help but smile. He just wanted to laugh at her.

"We will not sleep in the same bed…"

"Not even sex?" he asked her with a naughty glint on his face.

"Definitely no sex." She said with so much enthusiasm.

He put he slid his hands in his pocket and said sardonically "You're killing me." He then burst into laughter, tears at the corner of his eyes "you're so cute when you talk nonsense. How are we supposed to procreate without sex and we can't procreate without practice."

He eyes widened and her face was pale. "Procreate?"

"It's expected." He said to her.

She raised her shoulders then walked past him.

"In time you'll love me too." He told her, his laugh slowly dying down.

"This isn't happening." She cried. Her hands trembling.

He put his arms around her, she pushed him away then punched his chest "You ass!"

He released her "owe, I wanted to….." they he paused then muttered "You ungrateful little brat."

She gasped "Ungrateful? Oh, one minute you love me and now you say I'm an ungrateful brat."

"All couples have to fight eventually, our time is now."

She rolled her eyes and walked past him marching all the way to the bedroom where she slammed the door.

"I guess asking for sex would be inappropriate." He muttered and thought of how many people have ever said that on their wedding night.

…

A/N. I know it's very short but I want to know if it would be worth my time continuing this story so please give me your opinion. I'm writing exams XD so I'll only be able to finish this, as try to finish all my other stories after my exams on Friday.


	2. Chapter 2

(I don't own ccs)

**Honeymoon from hell  
Chapter 2**

"Aren't you going to eat anything?" Syaoran asked his new bride as she lay on her stomach on the couch with her face fixed on the television screen and her hand on the remote control.

"No." she replied him blankly.

"You've been sitting there for two days Sakura." He pointed out. He had studied her the past few days after she pulled his heart straight out of his chest and repeatedly stepped on it. She would watch television for the whole day. In the evenings she would stand at the balcony of their hotel room and stare up in the distance until the sun would set on her face.

They had left Japan the day before, now they were in Hawaii, practically one of the beautiful places in the world. Still, she refused to go to the beach with him or go to dinner with him. Her behavior was the same as it was when they were in Japan.

On the flight there she asked him "How long is this honeymoon?"

Surprised that she was talking to him he said "10 days."

She looked at him astounded then she muttered to herself "10 days." And then, she did not say any further words to him.

He didn't know what to do or how to feel. How was he going to explain this to his family? He walked over to the mini fridge and grabbed a chocolate bar.

"So is this what you plan to do for the rest of the year? Is this the type of woman I'm going to be married to forever?" he asked her firmly.

She slowly sat up and averted her gaze to him, she stared at him like a lost puppy and then she muttered "Forever is a long time."

"I know." He said agreeably.

She lay back on the couch, now laying on her back and staring up at the ceiling.

"You're in love with someone else." He said in a cool demeanor that concealed his raging heart.

She did not reply.

"I'll take that as a yes." He said. Then suddenly he started to feel angry. This was unfair, she was taking up space and she wasn't even being kind to him despite his efforts. And then, he snapped.

"What the hell is your problem?"

"Huh?" she looked at him surprised.

"I don't care if you don't want to be here, you're my wife and you are going to get dressed and we are going to have dinner." He said breathing rapidly. He had never shouted at a woman before, he immediately felt the urge to apologies but he managed to hold himself.

She jumped out of her chair, she folded her arms over her chest and said "So you expect me to get dressed and pretend to be your wife, to pretend I want to be there." She said in a rude tone.

"Yes Sakura Yes! It's the least you can do." He clenched his jaw and narrowed his eyes.

She took a step back "Uh….alright."

"I already agreed to those ground rules you set up the least you can do is follow a few of my rules."

She sighed "Fine fine, I get it."

"Dinner is in 10 minutes!"

"Okay!" she said dramatically marching into their bedroom and slamming the door.

He followed her to the bedroom, he opened the door "My clothes are in here too so if…" he lost track of his words when he saw that she was only wearing a bra and the skirt she had on before.

Sakura quickly covered her chest with her hand. She looked at him awkwardly her face turning bright red.

"Can I have my clothes?" He said hesitantly to her.

"Will you get out!" she exclaimed.

"After I get my suit." He walked past her; he snuck a quick glance then adopted a carefree disposition. He wanted to appear as though he was not interested in her that way anymore, as though the sight of her body did nothing to him.

"What part of get out do you not understand? This sexual harassment."

He chuckled a little "Sure it is."

Sakura frowned as he walked to the wardrobe and grabbed a suit from the hanger. She eyed him attentively. He walked past her, left the room closing the door behind him. "Be outside in ten minutes."

Sakura sighed and rolled her eyes then suddenly he entered again. She gasped.

"Can you pass me my shoes? They are on the floor next to my suitcase."

Sakura quickly looked for them and found them. She walked over to him and shoved them in his hands forgetting that she was exposing herself.

He looked at her awkwardly then he gritted and shut the door.

"Son of a…" Sakura wanted to scream; the tables had turned. It seemed as though he had the upper hand "wait till he sees me at dinner." She muttered to herself "he'll regret the day he married me."

She came out of the room in 30 minutes, in between those 30 minutes he had knocked on her door twice.

He eyed her from her face down to her toes "Is that what you are wearing?"

She nodded proudly. Sakura was wearing what she was wearing before she entered the bedroom, except she put a jacket over it. A denim skirt with a plat shirt and sandals.

He heaved a sigh "You made me wait for 30 minutes just so you can put on jacket.

She nodded "pretty much."

"They won't let you into the restaurant in that, we're in a five star hotel Sakura."

She sighed "Fine I'll change." Now her reason for going was because she was starving.

She entered the room, threw on a black turtle neck, a long black skirt, large black sunglasses and black heals. On a normal occasion she wouldn't dress like this but she needed to have the upper hand.

When she came out this time, he just shook his head and grabbed his jacket "I'm not even going to say anything."

"Good." She told him in a witty tone.

They entered the restaurant and sat in the non-smoking section upstairs. They were both very quiet at first as they browsed the menu. The waiter poured wine into their glasses, he could sense the tension.

"I'll have the vegetable salad and chicken soup."

Syaoran narrowed his eyes to her then held his gaze "Are you serious?"

"What?" she said to him. 

"You haven't eaten all day, well apart a piece of the chocolate bar I left on the table. You can order anything Sakura, don't hold back."

"I'm not; I just don't eat a lot."

He shook his head "I don't believe that." Syaoran looked at the waiter "Can we have the best meat platter on you menu here, my wife here is really really hungry." He said and the minute he finished the sentence her stomach grumbled and she blushed.

The waiter took the order and left.

"Are you crazy?" She said.

"I was going to ask you the same thing." he took a sip of his wine "I know you are not a vegetarian, don't tell me you are on some diet."

"You wouldn't understand but Yukito does." She said not realizing what she just said until it was already out.

He gave her a plastic smug "So there is someone."

Sakura turned her face away from him "I didn't say that. And it doesn't matter anyway."

He stood up "Once again you didn't have to say anything. I get it. I'm going to the rest room."

As he walked away, she felt kind of bad. Then she immediately shook that thought 'He knows I don't want to be here, he shouldn't be upset.'

"Excuse me, sorry." A woman said to Sakura "Are you Sakura Kinomoto."

Sakura nodded her head "Yes." She was surprised.

"It's me Tomoyo. We were in junior high together."

Sakura slowly smiled recognizing the face, it was certainly her except in middle school she had long raven hair, now she sported a bob cut that somehow didn't make sense on her.

Sakura stood up "Tomoyo!" she said hugging her "I remember."

"Oh my word Sakura, you haven't changed, same hair style and same everything." Tomoyo laughed.

Sakura looked down at what she was wearing, 'oh no!' she thought to herself. Tomoyo and her were good friends but at the same time rivals in middle school. They did everything together and were always competitive though they were not so obvious to each other about it. No one once to meet a past rival looking as hideous as she felt she did.

"You look different, your hair." Sakura pointed out "It was so long and…" she paused "But your new hairstyle is good too."

"I cut it off for this brain cancer organization I regularly raise funds for. They are going to make a wig out of my hair and give it to some little girl suffering from cancer."

"Oh." Sakura said blankly "that's really nice."

"What are you doing here anyway?"

"Uh…" Sakura looked up and saw Syaoran coming their direction, "I'm on my honeymoon with my husband…here he comes." She averted her body to look at him.

Tomoyo looked at Syaoran then looked at Sakura "He's your husband. He's gorgeous."

Sakura smiled from ear to ear "Well yeah." She giggled.

"Syaoran, this is Tomoyo. We were friends in middle school and this is Li Syaoran. My husband."

"Pleasure to meet you." Syaoran reached out his hand to greet her and she shook it replying "nice meeting you too."

"So what are you doing here?" Sakura asked.

"I'm also here on holiday, with my boyfriend. He's up in the hotel room though, he got food poisoning and he's been sick all day. Personally I think he is just being a bit of a brat but you know how babylike men get when they're sick."

"So you're eating alone?" Syaoran asked

"I was about to have dinner with a German couple that lives opposite us but I can join you if you don't mind and I have a feeling those two want to be alone."

"Sure." Sakura and Syaoran said at the same time.

"So what do you get up these days Sakura?" Tomoyo asked.

"I graduated last month from college."

"What was your major?" Tomoyo was smiling.

"Psychology." She said, she was not too enthusiastic about it and she found it difficult to pretend to be.

"Oh, I always thought you'd end up a doctor, you were one of the smartest girls in class."

Sakura raised her shoulders "You know psychology is interesting too. What about you?"

"I'm still in medical school and I am loving every minute of it. Last year we went to Congo in Africa and we worked at a hospital. You should have seen those kids it broke my heart. We also went to Mexico, Malaysia and in my freshman year we went to London where I met Eriol. Eriol is an architect, we've been together for 3 years." She paused "I'm talking too much, tell me about you."

"Well." She looked at Syaoran. "Uh..Syaoran and I…"

"We officially met a year ago, we never really dated. We just got married."

Tomoyo looked at them shocked "But…good for you." She sounded doubtful.

Syaoran took Sakura's hand and kissed it "I love her so much. Sometimes you just know and you don't need time to justify your feelings."

Sakura's face was bright red and she swallowed hard.

…..

That evening as they returned to their room they learnt that Tomoyo and her boyfriend were their neighbors. They bid her good night and entered into their room.

"She's nice." Syaoran said

Sakura raised her shoulders "I guess so."

"You envy her, aren't you?"

Sakura sighed "A little." She sat on the sofa "She's living my dream. I wanted to study medicine and travel the world and perhaps date an English man. Tomoyo knows that's what I've always wanted."

"Then why did you study psychology?"

"Because I wasn't accepted into medical school. My grades were not good enough. I feel like I haven't accomplished anything. I haven't seen the world, I haven't really helped anyone. I live a selfish life." She took off her shoes then stood up "Thanks for being nice when Tomoyo was around."

Syaoran's eyebrows rose and he was surprised.

She glanced at him "I know I haven't exactly been a great person to be around. I don't even know how you've been able to put up with me. I'm sorry." She confessed with a watery smiled. "Good night Syaoran."

"Good night" he said in a half whisper.

…

A/N: thanks everyone who supported this story by reviewing it. I hope you enjoyed this chapter.


	3. Chapter 3

**I now pronounce you miserable**

**A/N: Hi everyone. It's been forever since I updated this story and I hope you are still interested in reading it. I noticed how great the reviews have been and the high demand for me to update and I think I owe it to the readers to at least try to finish it.**

**Quick reminder: Sakura is forced by her parents to marry Syaoran, a handsome rich young man who adores her. The only problem is, she does not love him and does not want to be married to him. **

**Thanks xxx**

**Chapter 3**

**The great indoors**

Syaoran stood still in the middle of the lounge of the hotel staring up the television screen. He had come downstairs to talk to the hotel manager regarding the possibility of booking a hotel room with two bed-rooms or at least a sleeper couch. His request had been unsuccessful. His back had been soar all day after spending the past two days sleeping on the couch.

On the television screen a reporter was talking about the storm that that had hit the Island a few hours earlier. Apparently it was Hurricane Ivan and the weather was not going to change in the next five days. He folded his hands over his chest and concentrated hard on the screen. For him this meant that he was going to be stuck in the hotel room with his unenthusiastic bride.

He went back up to the room and casually opened the door. She was sitting on the couch staring at the television with the remote control in her hands. She was wearing a long t-shirt and slippers. In his mind, he wished she had been in his bed instead of on the couch and in sexy lingerie instead of some oversized t-shirt. He sighed and thought of how unfortunate he had been. He married a woman who did not want anything to do with him. She practically avoided any physical contact with him like a plague.

'There is going to be a hurricane.' she said now taking a bite out of a slice of cheese roll.

He sat next to her 'I know, it's already started.'

He lay back and watched her chew her food dramatically. He was some what taken aback by her reaction. He thought she would be walking across the room stomping her feet and complaining that he would be in her presence all week.

'That sucks.' she said as though unmoved.

He sat up 'We won't be allowed outside.'

She nodded slowly as she swallowed the food.

She stood up and said to him 'I'm going to sleep, it's really late.'

He gave her an approving smirk. She walked past him then stopped in her tracks. She averted her gaze to look at him and said 'Did you manage to convince them that we need another room.'

He turned his head a little to look at her 'Yes, the hotel is fully booked.'

'Oh.' she said softly.

He sighed at the thought of having to sleep on that uncomfortable leather couch. It even squeaked when he moved. He grabbed the blankets that were on the side. He lazily took off his trousers and unbuttoned his shirt.

In the bedroom Sakura jumped unto the kings sized bed. She thought about how huge the bed was. She sat in the middle under the sheets and looked around the enormous room. She wasn't even paying for any of it, she did not deserve it, she thought.

She saw the lights go dim in the other room from the tiny space under her door. An uncomfortable feeling was yanking at her heart. She jumped out of bed and walked to the door. She leaned against it uncertain if she should open it.

Slowly she did. She could already hear him tossing and turning. She watched him from the space in the door that was now slightly ajar.

He raised his head up and thus caught her staring.

'What's wrong?' he asked her.

She gasped inwardly and then she turned on the living room light 'I feel bad that you have to sleep on the couch for another night.'

'It's nothing' he said modestly.

She shook her head 'No, its not.' she looked at the floor for a moment then said 'You can sleep on the king sized bed too.'

His eyebrows shot up and he gave her an inquisitive glare. He was surprised at this sudden change of heart. Of course it did not entail that she wanted to be romantically involved with him but it was still sudden.

'Is the guilt getting to you?'

She did not comment. Instead she said to him 'You can come into the room.' with a blank look on her face.

He followed her to the bedroom. When she noticed he was in his underwear and t-shirt she turned away and said 'Do you mind changing.' she didn't want to sound like she was asking for too much.

'Sure, I'll change.' he said understandably, at this point they were still strangers. If you are to look at things from that angle then the experience was awkward.

He managed to find a pair of cotton trousers.

She separated the linen to ensure that they were not sharing it. She turned off the lamp and got into bed and he followed after that.

They both lay motionless for awhile staring up at the ceiling. She could not help but be nervous; she had never shared her bed before with anyone. She turned to sleep on her side away from him but the lightening from the storm was so bright in shone through the curtains. It was distracting and not to mention she has always been afraid of thunder and lightening. She squeezed the sheets in her hands and turned again.

He was no better. He tried to block the sound of lightening by covering the pillow over his ears. He tossed and turned for a few minutes.

She realised from this that he was also having trouble sleeping.

She heaved a heavy sigh.

'What is it?' he asked her in a half whisper that sounded almost ridiculous.

'I can't sleep.' she said softly.

'Neither can I' he was more audible this time.

He lay on his back and put his hands behind his back. 'Are you still angry that you are married to me?'

She was still for a moment trying to figure out where her feelings were. She thought about how she felt about him now. He was nicer and much normal than she thought he would be but that did not change anything. Between them at that moment was a huge gap from her side of the bed to his that reminded her of the distance between them. He still had no idea who she was and why she reacted the way she did to their arranged marriage.

She released the sheets that she was squeezing between her fingers and said 'This does not change anything...just because I am more subtle about it doesn't mean the feeling of resentment has disappeared.' tears started to stream down her face but she did not want him to know this. She did not want him to know how much it hurt her being like that with him.

'Wow, you are cold.' he said.

'That's your opinion.' she said.

'That I am entitled to.' he averted his gaze and all he could see was her silhouette in the darkness 'You must be careful Sakura, you might just catch a cold from all that ice in your heart.' the statement was a little uncalled for.

'Do you still believe you love me?' she asked him.

He was quiet. He did not want to answer that question or think about it. What did this mean for him? Was she expecting him to simply return home with no wife on his side? How was he going to explain this predicament to his family without looking like a complete moron and without making her family seem like gold diggers whom he can concluded in his mind that they were.

She turned to look at him 'Aren't you going to reply me?'

He stayed silent. Once again she was getting on his very last nerve; he regretted bringing the topic of marriage up. He started to feel as though he was better off sleeping on the couch.

She closed her eyes and he closed his and without uttering anymore words, they both feel asleep.

...

Early in the morning Syaoran ambled over to the window and opened the blinds where he got a great view of the damage the hurricane had caused and was still causing. He could see the coconut trees blowing from side to side as the whistles of the unsympathetic wind became louder. He closed the blinds then turned his head to look at his wife.

She opened her eyes then immediately closed them when she saw him standing there. She would not know what exactly to say to him.

He thought hard about what he was going to do next. Would he allow himself to be defeated and go back home as soon as the skies clear or was he going to try to make this work. And then he thought of the advise his father would give him 'You are a Li, you can get any woman to fall for you. You just have to show her why you are worth it.'

He smiled at the thought of this great piece of advice that he had actually given himself.

'Hey Sakura...' he said; he knew she was awake.

She sat up and rubbed her eyes then she said groggily 'Good morning.'

'What about I make breakfast today.' he said in a smooth confident tone.

She revealed her entire face to him and said 'We don't have a kitchen or cooking equipment...and why would you want to go out of your way doing that?'

He tucked his hands in his pocket casually 'There is not much to do.'

He walked off 'Coming?...we're going to the kitchen by the restaurant downstairs.'

Sakura's eyebrows shot up. 'People can just do that?'

He smirked 'Not really, but I can.'

She quickly changed as did he. She followed him to the elevator, through the lobby and eventually the kitchen. She worried a little about walking around a fancy hotel such as that in navy blue tracksuit pants and beige cotton ankle boots.

He spoke to a few of the waiters as she stood by his side, they gave him the approval and they entered the kitchen.

She attempted to tuck her hands into the pockets of her perfect fit denim jacket 'I hope you're a great cook.' she said dryly 'otherwise this will be really embarrassing for you.'

Her words made him slightly nervous. He smiled at her and said 'Just watch.'

He had envisioned himself making her a stack of blueberry pancakes, eggs and bacon. She sat on the counter and watched him as he prepared her breakfast.

No one has ever made her breakfast before, not even her ex fiancé Yukito. It had been some time since she had thought of Yukito in ways that made her feel sad. She was so busy being upset about being married to Syaoran that she forgot about the events of the previous week that brought tears to her eyes. She had never loved anyone the way she loved him and he ended their 3 year relationship because he found out that her parents had set her up to marry another man. Sakura's features softened and she wanted to cry. She still could not believe it was over and it felt like she would never get over it.

Syaoran flipped the pancakes like a pro with the frying pan but she was too caught up in other thoughts to acknowledge or appreciate it.

'Are you okay.' he asked her noticing that her eyes were getting cloudier.

She pulled herself back to reality and shook her head 'Uh...yes.'

He looked at the pancakes and was slightly disappointed. He looked at her once more then said 'Something is clearly wrong. I don't know what it is but I really wish you would lighten up.'

She shook her head then smiled 'I'm fine and by the way, you are a great chef. Where did you learn to cook like that?'

He raised an eyebrow and smirked at her 'You haven't even tasted it. I taught myself.'

She raised one of her shoulders 'I can tell its good.'

'Here have a taste.' he said handing her the plate of the already made pancakes.

She pulled out a piece and ate it. 'Yumm..' she said reaching out for another piece. She licked her fingers. 'I've realised that I don't know all that much about you. What other hidden talents do you possess?'

This was it, his opportunity to sell himself 'Well, I play polo, tennis and I am a great swimmer...I guess. I can speak 5 different languages and can play four instruments.'

She looked at him shocked; now this didn't make sense at all. He was the perfect gentleman, handsome with a number of impressive traits. Why in the world would a guy like that want to marry a middle class woman such as herself? A feeling of suspicion started to overcome her. He could have any woman in the world but there she was.

'I can role my tongue into a flower and I can speak a little bit of baby talk.'

He chuckled 'Baby talk?'

She nodded 'You know...ga ga goo goo. I learnt it from babysitting my baby cousins and niece.'

He laughed now 'You're funny.' he said 'You have a pretty huge family don't you.'

She nodded 'You noticed at the wedding right? My fathers 2 siblings had 7 kids each and my mother has 4 brothers all of which have kids of their own. My brother Touya has daughter too.'

'I am an only child.' he said to her. 'I have one cousin.'

She was surprised 'then who were all of those people at the wedding?'

'Family friends.'

When she thought about it carefully, he did not introduce her to any of his relatives.

Sakura swung her feet and thought; this means he is the heir to the entire family fortune. No wonder her parents pushed her to marry him. She was certain that they already knew this. She thought it to be ridiculous how conceited her family was. She was certain that even her extended family was in on it. No wonder they refused to hear a word of her disapproval.

'Why did you choose someone who is not even that special?'

'Well, I didn't want to marry a stuck up rich girl and you are special.'

She was speechless.

He finished preparing breakfast. They ate in the kitchen and managed to converse for an hour. He told her of his upbringing and the reason why he was so adamant about being in an arranged marriage.

'My grandfather, my father and mother were all in arranged marriages. They all had successful marriages.'

She took a bite of the bacon 'Have you ever considered that perhaps...the woman you choose to marry may not be in love with you.'

He shook his head 'No, I didn't see this coming.'

'I just don't believe in love and things like that?' she laughed a little 'Love at first sight and eternity.'

He gave her a disapproving look.

'And why not?'

She shrugged 'Well, how do you trust your feelings when they can change at any moment. How do you make a promise to love someone forever when it is not certain that you will feel that way forever.'

He shook his head. He could not believe what he was hearing. He had married someone who did not believe in the very existence of true love.

She finished her food and he finished his and they walked back upstairs.

When they got back to the flat she entered the bathroom to take a bath. The door bell rang and he quickly rushed to answer it. It was their neighbours, Sakura's friend Tomoyo.

'Hi.' she said with all smiles.

'Hello.' he greeted her.

'Is your electricity on? Ours just went out and apparently its like that for all the flats on my side of the hotel.'

'Its working.' he said to her.

'Do you mind if we intrude? I really need to charge my cell phone and the battery of my laptop is dead. This hurricane is turning into a nightmare.'

He opened the door widely 'Come on in. Sakura is taking a bath.'

'Thanks, I'll just go get my things and tell Eriol he can come in.'

The couple came into the flat and immediately started charging their equipment. Tomoyo knocked on the bathroom door.

'Sakura can I come in?'

Sakura was startled, she was sitting in the tub deciding whether to let this friendemy in. She bit her lower lip and said 'sure Tomoyo.'

Tomoyo walked in and closed the door. Tomoyo was wearing a pink silk robe and her hair was in an absolute mess 'Sorry to barge in like this.'

Sakura sank further into the tub. 'Its fine.' she muttered. She was a little annoyed, now she was going to sit in the tub and listen to Tomoyo's non-stop bragging about her perfect life. Now Tomoyo had just been promoted, not only would she be bragging, she can now brag in Sakura's personal space.

'Why are you by yourself in the tub on this chilly day?' she asked.

Sakura looked at her confused 'What do you mean.'

'Well it is your honeymoon and you would think that two people would not be able to keep their hands off of each other after tying the knot.'

Sakura made an unintentional look of dislike, she thought of the idea of Syaoran taking a bath with her. Then she blushed.

'Are you still as shy as you were in high school.'

Sakura's eyes wandered for a moment and then she muttered 'no.' and then she said confidently 'Syaoran and I do all sorts of sexual stuff. We are just don't put it out there is everyone's face.'

Tomoyo looked at Sakura; she could not believe how much this hasn't changed. 'There is nothing wrong with showing affection. To get lost in someone.'

Sakura rolled her eyes 'you are still the same old shy Sakura.'

Tomoyo's words hit a nerve. She was not the 'same old Sakura' she was a whole different version. She said nothing until Tomoyo left the bathroom.

After the bath, she quickly got dressed. She put on a short yellow summer dress and ambled to the living room where Syaoran was standing next to the Eriol looking at one of Eriol's electronic gadgets and Tomoyo was busy on her phone.

She took a deep breath and swallowed hard.

She walked slowly up to Syaoran and pulled him towards him. 'Hi honey.' she stood on her toes and kissed his mouth.

Syaoran was so shocked he could not close his eyes.

...

To be continued


	4. Chapter 4

**I now pronounce you miserable**

**Chapter 4**

**She has issues**

Syaoran stood there stunned at what just happened. He tried to be casual about it but failed dismally. As she slowly parted her lips from his, she bit her lower lip in a way that was extremely sexy then she smiled. He felt his skin tingle and his heart race and then he slowly smiled looking into her eyes and for the first time she looked back into his eyes and kept her gaze.

She snuck her hand around his forearm then casually said 'So what are you guys up to?'

Eriol and Tomoyo looked at them and smiled at each other.

As from that moment Syaoran could hardly focus. He would look at her as she acted normal about the whole thing. The kiss they shared on the day of their wedding was nothing like this; it was more like a peck. This was sweet but intimate.

He found himself getting along with Tomoyo's boyfriend Eriol very well. He was quieter and down earth in comparison to his girlfriend.

That evening after Tomoyo and Eriol left, they sat in bed watching television; Syaoran could not help but think of what had happened. The rest of the day was a bore, they had a couple of meaningless conversations with the other couple and now they were sitting in bed with their dinner right between them, filling up the distance.

As the film played, he turned his head to look at her and then he turned away. He could only steal a glance. He had not yet mastered the courage to ask about what had happened earlier that day. She was looking up at the television screen. She seemed completely taken by it.

'You…' he started in a low tone and then he said confidently 'You kissed me today.'

She slowly turned and looked at him then she stared back at the television screen as though unfazed 'I only did it because Tomoyo said some things that just got to me.' she explained trying to be as casual about it as possible.

'What could she have possibly said that would have brought that on?' he said jokingly 'Considering the fact that you want nothing to do with me and are angered by my mere existence.'

She sighed 'Can we just not talk about it?' she asked, her cheeks turned a dark shed of crimson.

He said nothing and looked away. He took the tray from the table and left the room to go leave it on the counter by the mini-bar. For that moment he was gone, Sakura took a deep breath. She had been thinking about the kiss she shared with him and she was still astonished by how she managed to do that. Her mind kept replaying the kiss, how it felt like. She had survived meaningless kisses in the past but somehow this one was different. She placed her fingers on her lips…he had responded to her towards the end. It was anything but meaningless. She shook her head and tried to alter her thoughts.

He re-entered the room to find her eyes still glued on the television screen.

He sighed inwardly then took off his t-shirt.

This action took Sakura off guard. She stared at him shocked then turned away quickly as though it was so wrong to look. He was medium built and toned.

She could not concentrate on the film anymore. Her mind was running wild and she tried harder to compose her thoughts. She took a deep breath then she said 'Its chilly, why are you taking your t-shirt off.'

'I spilt some of the soup that was left over on it and I'm too lazy to look through my bags for a clean one.'

She nodded in a way that told him that she was hot and bothered.

'I'm shirtless…not naked' he laughed 'you act like you've never seen a shirtless guy.'

Sakura folded her arms over her chest 'I'm not bothered by it. I was just asking.'

He got into the sheets 'You are bothered.' he contested.

She could not deny it, seeing him like that and picturing him kissing her released certain thoughts of temptation in her mind. A voice in her head yelled 'You just want to jump his bones you pervert!' she gasped inwardly and blushed even more. She could not deny her sexual attraction to him. After all, he was a good looking man. However, she could not allow him to have the slightest clue that over night she had come to lust for him.

Then after that a couple on the television screen started kissing. She reached for the remote control and quickly turned off the television and then she turned off the lamp light and went to sleep.

He watched her for a moment then he lay on his back. She was absolutely cute and he was pleased that he received a reaction from her just by taking off his t-shirt.

'Hey Sakura…' he started, he knew the topic he was now going to start would completely throw her off and put her on the edge.

'Yeah…' she said pressing her lips tightly against each other after that.

'Did you have a boyfriend before me …are you still together?'

Sakura closed her eyes and she saw Yukito's face and then she slowly opened them and replied 'yes and no.'

He plumped up on his elbows; he had a feeling about it from the start 'Yes to what?'

'I did have a boyfriend but we broke up.'

'Did he break up with you?'

'Yes.'

Everything made more sense; some one had broken her heart. He could tell that she loved the person and wondered if she could ever love him that way. She was damaged goods and it was clear that she had sworn off love. Whatever the previous guy did, he ruined her for him, he thought.

He tried to think of the right words to say. The type of words that encourage one to move on and to resurrect themselves but nothing came to mind. It hurt him that that was how things were.

He said nothing for fifteen minutes then he said 'He is an asshole for leaving you.'

'You don't understand. He broke up with me because of you! Because I was set up marry you we argued all the time. We came to a solution eventually. We were supposed to run off together on the day of the wedding but he never came to get me like he promised to on the day of the wedding. I waited for him in agitation but he didn't come…he didn't call…he disappeared.'

Syaoran was so surprised that he could not say anything. He was silent, he was awake until four in the morning and she said nothing more to him.

That morning he woke up to the sound of singing. He opened his eyes and rubbed them intensely to find the other side of the bed was empty. He sighed when he thought of the revelation she had made the night before 'somebody kill me now.' he muttered and then there it was again. The sound of singing. It was her. He stood up and followed it. It was coming from the bathroom. He paused at the bathroom door and listened to it. She had a beautiful voice. He listened for awhile before he managed to pull away.

Enticing her was going to be much more difficult now. He ran his hands through his hair frustrated. How was he going to convince her to forget about this man and that he was not going to break her. He felt like he had just been pushed a few steps backwards.

He stood there stiff and said to himself 'come on Syaoran. It's not the time to give up. It will be fine.'

Suddenly the door open and Sakura in a white bathrobe was glancing directly at him. Water dripped from her hair as she stared at him in a quiet awkward moment. He blushed then turned away placing his hands of his waist 'well….just as I speculated the bathroom door is working.'

She walked past him and laughed 'were you talking to yourself?'

'Uh…not quiet.' he said now a little bit more collected.

She stopped in her tracks 'hmm I hope you weren't trying to sneak a peek.'

He shook his head hard 'no…I was listening to your singing.'

'and what about it…' she said expecting him to say something cheeky.

Instead he turned his back on her and started to walk away 'Its nice.' he said casually 'I'll let you get ready.'

Later that day Tomoyo and Eriol invited them for drinks in their hotel room. Tomoyo was so excited she insisted they get all dressed up.

Sakura approached her wardrobe in search of something that was not too casual and yet not too outstanding. She pushed aside a few clothes when she found two dresses she had recently bought before the wedding. One was a mini-black cock-tail dress and the other a short red tight fitting dress. If she was going to go to Tomoyo's place she figured she might as well go all out. If there was one thing she had on Tomoyo was that she had long legs she had often been complemented about. She figured Tomoyo would wear something that exposed her breasts because they were bigger than hers.

She walked into the bedroom where Syaoran was now sitting on the bed reading a book. She approached him in a subtle shy manner and then she held both of the dresses up.

'Which one?' she asked. She was a little embarrassed to be asking him this but it would be nice to have a second opinion.

His eyebrows strategically rose up then he said 'I like both of them.'

She sighed and slouched 'Are you serious?' she said disappointed 'Okay, question. If someone pointed a gun to your head which one would you choose?'

He smiled and placed his book on the bed side table 'Try both of them on?'

She sighed then said 'alright.'

In less than 10 minutes she walked into the room in the tight red dress. Syaoran had a lingering smile on his face as he watched her spin around. He had always had a weakness for long legs. She looked sexy and he was tempted to approach her and try his luck in kissing her.

'What do you think?' She had now asked the question twice.

Syaoran shook his head 'Uh, it's hot.'

She looked at him worryingly 'classy hot or street walker hot.'

He raised his shoulders 'a little bit of both.'

Sakura slapped herself on the head intentionally and said 'I'll wear the black one.' As she walked away she said to him 'thanks for nothing.'

He didn't really mind which one she was going to wear. Both dresses looked good and he predicted that they would both suit her.

As she changed in the walk in closet she yelled out to him 'Aren't you going to get ready?'

'I won't take half as long as you will.' He stood up. He already knew exactly what he was going to wear. A blue shirt and black trousers—simple.

Later, when Sakura came out in the black cocktail dress Syaoran stared at her for a moment then said 'you look good.'

She smiled 'Really! Thank you. You too.'

They knocked on Tomoyo and Eriol's door.

The couple had put much effort in creating a beautiful setting despite the storm that was raging outside. They set up a table with a beautiful centre piece and some candles.

As Sakura suspected, Tomoyo was wearing a top that exposed her cleavage. The girls hugged each other and complemented each other while Eriol shook Syoaran's hand.

Tomoyo looked at her wrist watch and said 'Lets drink. We bought a whole wine collection before the storm from various wineries.'

They all had a short conversation complaining about the storm outside and how much it was ruining their vacation.

And then Tomoyo started off with the usual topics about how she had saved starving people and homeless children and what made her course so interesting. It was enough to make Sakura just want to gobble up all the wine in her glass. She was bored while Syaoran took an interest in Tomoyo's 'gibberish' as Sakura put it in her mind. She wondered what he was really thinking.

Finally the topic became less about Tomoyo's experiences and more about their time together at Tomoedea high school.

'Sakura didn't have a single boyfriend throughout high school.' Tomoyo revealed to Syaoran after he had requested information about the high school version of Sakura.

Sakura smiled a little and then said 'I was busy studying. You know that honey.' She tried to defend herself.

'What about you Syaoran? How was the high school experience for you?' Eriol asked.

He took a quick sip of his wine 'I had a few girlfriends. I went to an all boys high school and most of the girls I dated went to the girls school a couple of blocks away.'

It was not long after that that Sakura started to realize how drunk she was getting from the wine. She blinked hard and Syaoran asked her if she was okay.

She nodded then said to Tomoyo 'Why do you do that? You go out of your way to embarrass me…to bring me down! Do you think you're better than me?' she a very composed tone.

A blanket of complete awkward silence swept over the room.

'I'm…it's not my intention and I don't think that I'm better than you.' Tomoyo said defensively. She was shocked at the sudden confrontation and concluded that Sakura had had too much to drink. While everyone else was talking she was busy drinking away. 'You're drunk.' she said.

'I'm being honest. When we were kids.' Sakura said pointing a finger at Tomoyo and getting out of her chair 'this girl used to be obsessed with me. She used to take pictures of me all the time! She told the whole school we were best friends. She was never my best friend' Sakura started to raise her voice.

'Come on Sakura, now you're just being mean.' Syaoran said.

She stomped her feet and said 'But I'm not Syaoran.'

Syaoran stood up and put his hand around her waist 'Okay, let's go home now. It's late.'

'She started it.' Sakura said in her drunken voice. 'Everything she is now is my dream. I'm the original. That is theft of intellectual property! I used to tell her what I wanted to do with my life and she went on and copied just like she used to always copy me in junior high.'

Syaoran knew if he allowed her to keep blabbering she would say something that would upset the couple even more. He had to save her from herself. He covered her mouth with his hand to shut her up.

After that he lifted her and carried her over his shoulder 'Come on honey, you need to rest.' he said embarrassed for her.

'Hoe!' she said as he carried her out the door 'We were never friends!' she said managing to squeeze in a few last words.

When they got to their hotel room he closed the door and put her down.

'So much for having friends' Syaoran said dryly 'I doubt we will be getting any invitations to hang out with them anytime soon.'

She walked to the bedroom and got on the bed. 'I feel so happy! It feels so good to get all of that off my chest!'

He stretched out his hand and said 'You will fall off the bed if you're not careful.' he grabbed her hand.

She pulled her hand away from his grip 'Syaoran why do you like me so much?' She asked him in a cheerily voice.

'Well….ask me later.' he said.

She smiled 'Do you want to touch me and hug me and kiss me?' she said stretching her hand out to touch his face.

'Uh' he said oddly and then he looked up and said 'don't ask me that.' me muttered.

She got off the bed almost falling down.

'Geez. I'm just teasing you.' She took a deep breath 'I feel so dizzy. Everything is all wobbly.'

He took her hand and led her to the bathroom. 'Just quickly wash up with cold water. Trust me you will feel better.'

She turned around and said 'unzip me.'

Syaoran turned his face away for a moment as she waited for him to pull down her zip. He reached out his hands and pulled down her zip wtaring weakly at her smooth back.

She turned around and pushed him back with both hands pressed on his chest 'now get out of here…I'm going to get naked now.'

He shook his head 'Sheesh, you don't have to be so aggressive.'

She laughed 'I'm not being aggressive my darling husband.'

He went back into the bedroom and started to take off his clothes. He started to question if it was a good idea leaving her alone in the bathroom like that. He heard the sound of running water then and then suddenly he heard a bang.

He ran quickly into the bathroom to find that she had collapsed on the shower floor.

...

**A/N: Thanks everyone for all the great reviews. I hope you found this chapter entertaining. . Bye xxxx**


	5. Chapter 5

**I now pronounce you miserable**

**Chapter 5**

**Reasons for sorry**

_The sun is filling up the room and I can hear you dreaming. Do you feel the way I do right now? I wish you would just give up because the best part is falling...call it anything but love. And I will make sure to keep my distance and say I love you when you're not listening and how long can I keep this up? I'll give you everything I am, all my broken heart beats until I know you understand. And I keep waiting...for you to take me. So I'll make sure to keep my distance and say I love you when you're not listening._

He watched her as she slept, the storm had finally cleared and the room was bright as the sun shone in her face. He looked at her for the longest moment as his eyes narrowed. The events of the previous night did not change anything. She was definitely a fire cracker, much more different than he had anticipated but that did not change his feelings, in fact he was almost sure it supplemented them.

He recalled how fast his heart beat when he found her lying on the bathroom floor. He quickly ran to her and held her in his hands screaming out her name. She muttered something that was incoherent. He carried her into the bedroom and placed her on the bed before covering her up with the sheets. He called Tomoyo who confirmed that she merely passed out because of the high alcohol intake. It was a given that she would wake up feeling sore all over but she was going to be fine.

He smiled for a moment and then he pulled himself away and walked to the lounge where he planned to check his email on his laptop.

Sakura woke up, her body ached and her memories were hazy. She looked up at the ceiling immediately blinking hard after that. She realised that she is naked. Her heart skipped a beat as her mind went crazy about the events that might have caused this. She blushed and thought of how it would have possibly happened. She couldn't have possibly initiated it and Syaoran did not seem like a man who would take advantage of a drunk woman. Her mind was spinning and she muttered as sweat came on her forehead 'I lost my virginity and I don't even remember.'

She shook her head. She refused to believe that that was the reason why she was in their bed naked. There had to be a rational explanation. She popped out of bed and quickly took a shower. She noticed that the sun was out today so she wore shorts and a t-shirt.

She walked out of the bedroom and ambled into the lounge. Syaoran raised his eyes to her and said in a husky voice 'You're up.'

She nodded in a manner that made her appear child like.

Her face was bright red as she approached him. She settled on the arm chair across him and crossed her legs. She did not know how to bring up the subject. He tore his eyes off of her and immediately resumed with what he had been doing.

She sat there quiet.

She looked down at her exposed thighs and placed her hands over them.

He looked at her and she nearly got a shock.

'Are you okay?' he asked her.

She nodded 'I'm a bit sore.' she swallowed hard. That's right, her body was sore...perhaps he was those types, rough in bed. Her hands trembled as images of them doing the deed came to her mind. Her imagination was running wild, she saw herself in a leather suit getting spanked.

'What's eating you?' he asked her casually.

She raised her head up and said 'Did we...' she stuttered 'Did we have coitus?'

Syaoran looked at her for a moment before he broke into laughter. He laughed so hard he had to place his hand on his stomach which was now in pain. A tear came to the edge of his left eye.

Sakura just watched him looking innocent and confused.

'Coitus? sex? you want to know if we had sex?' he laughed.

Sakura remained quiet.

As his laughter disappeared she muttered.

'I was a virgin you know.' she muttered 'that's not the way I thought it would happen.'

He stopped laughing and said 'Really? were you? those moves of yours were way out of my league.' he teased her.

Her lower lip started to tremble and tears started to fill her eyes.

When he saw this his face quickly became serious. He placed his lap top on the side and stood up. He grabbed her hand and pulled her into his arms. At that moment, all he wanted to do was hold her. He didn't mean to make her cry. Tears slowly spilled from her eyes.

She rubbed her head on his chest and sobbed and then he muttered in a serious tone. 'I'm kidding.' he said softly 'we didn't...you collapsed in the shower and I placed you in bed. You were naked when I found you.'

She stopped crying and she hit his chest with her fist 'Idiot!' she said annoyed and then she said 'idiot.' in a relived tone.

He released her and said 'I'm sorry, I just had to.' he chuckled.

'Did you see me naked?'

He smirked with a spark in his eye 'Yes...you didn't give me any other choice. It was either that or I leave you there.'

She moved away from him and said 'well...' she turned red again for a moment then added 'at least we didn't sleep together.'

He gawked at her.

'I mean...I'm glad I didn't get carried away.' she said waving her hands in the air.

'You did get carried away, just not in that way. Do you recall shouting at Tomoyo?'

The memory appeared in her mind and she cradled her head in her hands. 'Oh yes. I remember. I'm horrible.'

'All you have to do is apologise and blame it on the alcohol.'

She gawked at him with eyes wide open 'APOLOGISE?!'

He grabbed her shoulders and forced her to walk to the door 'Yes apologise. You know its the right thing to do.'

'But..but...'she stuttered 'I'm too embarrassed, what am I going to say?'

He opened the door and pushed her out 'You'll know when you get there.'

She gasped and he closed the door. She heaved a sigh and she slowly turned around to find herself facing Tomoyo's door. She took short steps towards it and knocked on the door.

Tomoyo quickly opened the door.

'Hi.' Sakura said looking at the floor.

'Oh, if it isn't Sakura.' Tomoyo said in a calm tone.

Sakura put her hands behind her back 'I came to apologise.'

'Did your husband put you up to this.' she asked suspiciously.

'Well...' Sakura started 'He did but I know I owe you an apology. I do feel bad about what I said to you last night.'

Tomoyo raised an eyebrow 'Did you mean it. Is that how you really see me?...a bitch.'

Sakura nodded a little. She was having trouble being dishonest. 'Not a bitch so much...more like a rival.'

Tomoyo sighed 'Come in Kinomoto, I have to pack so if you have anything to tell me you can say it while I get ready.'

Sakura got in and closed the door. She followed Tomoyo to the bedroom. There was a suitcase spread open in the middle of the bed.

'Are you going home?'

Tomoyo nodded 'My lectures start in two days. I have to go home then back to University the very next day. Eriol's flight left earlier this morning. He is off to London.'

Sakura leaned against the wall as Tomoyo packed 'I am sorry you know.'

Tomoyo took out neatly folded clothes from the chest drawer and proceeded to packing 'I never meant to bring you down with the things I said last night or any other occasion. I've always looked up to you Sakura, ever since we were young. Everyone adored you. You were everything I wish I could be and when I transferred to elementary school you were the first person to be nice to me. Even if you didn't see me the same way...you were my best friend.'

Sakura was surprised at the revelation.

'When my father passed away, I could not cope with school life but you Sakura, you were always inspired me. I don't know how to explain it. I know in high school we got into a bit of a rivalry but I never stopped considering you a friend. I wanted to be just like you. I thought it would be nice if we both got into medicine and went to the same University. I remember how sad you were when you didn't get into the school of medicine. You didn't talk to anyone, especially me and I'm sorry if you always felt like I took away your dream. I didn't mean for things to turn out the way they did.'

Sakura folded her hands over her chest 'then why did you keep embarrassing me and telling Syaoran things about me that I don't like.'

'Sakura, there is nothing embarrassing about not having a boyfriend in high school, you always said you were saving yourself for someone special and you found him. He's your husband anyway; he's going to find out everything anyway. I know I may come off cheeky sometimes but I have good intentions.'

Sakura said nothing. She felt so guilty. She looked down at the floor once more to hide her shame.

Tomoyo paused and looked at her 'I'm still jealous of you. That guy in that room loves you so much. He would do anything for you. He was so worried about you when you passed out last night. Maybe things didn't turn out the way you wanted them to but everything does happen for a reason. Even though you don't save dying children, does not mean your life doesn't have a purpose. Nothing gives life more of a meaning than loving someone the way you two love each other.'

Sakura raised her head up and looked at Tomoyo. Tears were in her eyes and she said 'You have Eriol.'

'Sakura, Eriol and I have been fighting all holiday. This trip was my idea, I wanted us to spend more time together but it turned out to be a complete nightmare. He stays in London and I stay in Tokyo and he wants me to move but I have to finish my studies and he doesn't want to move to Tokyo. Sometimes I'm not too sure if I really love him.' she stopped and shook her head 'I don't know why I'm even telling you this.' she sat on the bed.

Sakura walked to her and sat next to her.

Tomoyo looked at Sakura 'How did you know when you were in love with Syaoran?'

Sakura inhaled deeply and thought of Syaoran's face 'How did I know...' she muttered. She smiled to herself. The more she thought about the question the more she questioned herself on how she felt about Syaoran now. It had been six days now and in only four days the honeymoon would be over.

Her heart beat was loud and she held her hand to her chest uncertain of what was going on deep inside of her.

'I just did.' she simply replied. 'I just knew.'

She spoke to Tomoyo for awhile more before she rushed back to the hotel room. She quickly walked into the bedroom to find him lying back reading the novel he had been reading for days. She climbed up on the bed and sat next to him. His eyes were focused on her.

'You're back. You were gone for an hour. I take it that you and Tomoyo are friends again.'

She nodded interrupting him by her erratic movement. 'Yes.'

He put the book down.

'Syaoran.' she said softly 'thank you.'

He smiled at her 'thanks for what?'

'For not being judgemental and for looking after me last night and you were right about the whole thing with Tomoyo. I shouldn't compare myself with other people.'

He smirked 'It's not a big deal.' he sat up 'Do you want to go for a walk on the beach?'

She nodded hard 'yes.'

As they walked outside of the hotel room towards the beach she thought of how stubborn she had been. She had refused to even go outside up to now. He walked ahead of her and she looked up at his back. She studied the way he walked and his disposition. He turned around and looked at her 'You're walking pretty slow.'

She blushed and sped up. She didn't understand why she suddenly felt embarrassed.

They both looked up at the calm sea as they strolled.

'It is beautiful.' Sakura exclaimed.

He was impressed by her enthusiasm. It was a sudden change of attitude from her.

As they walked across each other she looked at him and said 'You're an alien aren't you?'

He laughed 'what would make you say that.'

'There is absolutely nothing wrong with you. You're every girl's type.'

He shook his head and said shyly 'No I'm not.' he paused 'I'm not you're type.'

She sighed. 'um.'

'Come on, you made it very clear that you want nothing to do with me. I'm almost sure right now you're just passing the time and waiting for this honeymoon to be over so you can divorce me.'

The wind blew in her hair and she paused in her tracks as did he.

She said to him softly 'How do you expect me to feel when you spring those three words on me just like that? Did you expect me to immediately say them back when I barely know you? When someone else just broke my heart?'

He was quiet for a moment then he said 'I don't know what I was expecting. I guess I didn't think about it. I never considered that the feeling may not be mutual.' he said 'and that was my mistake.'

She took a deep breath 'I don't want to upset you but...'

'I know.' he cut her off 'You are still in love with someone else.'

She was silent.

'Geez your a difficult woman.' he said as though speaking to himself. He walked over to her and grabbed her shoulders 'But let me be completely honest with you. This guy you claim you love, he doesn't love you. If he did you wouldn't be standing here with me. If I were him I would have never let you marry another guy. I would have fought for you no matter what.'

She looked into his eyes. 'You would have done that for me?'

He nodded 'Without a second thought.' he released her and held her hand. He pulled her and started walking 'Hoe! Slowly down.'

'I want to show you something.'

He walked towards the ocean and the waves splashed over their feet. He bent down and picked up a shell from the ground. He took her other hand and placed it in her palm.

'It's a blue shell.' she said bluntly.

'Do you know the significance of a shell?'

He held her hand 'They are a symbol of love. Because of its hard casting, the shell is a protective image- protecting life and it symbolises the protective quality love sometimes takes.'

She smiled a little 'You're persistent.' she blushed and she thought. _'He's romantic'_

'It's not much and you don't have to keep it and...' he stuttered.

'I'll keep it.' she folded her fingers over it.

She looked at Syaoran in that moment. Was it possible that all the charm was finally taking its toll on her? She blushed hard and for the first time she wasn't feeling the sadness in her heart that was making her insane. Instead she felt happy to be there, standing there with him.

...

To be Continued..

A/N: Hi everyone! thanks so much again for all the reviews last week. Next chapter will be the story of Syaoran came to love Sakura. I'm sure everyone is curious.

First Paragraph are Lyrics to the Christine Pierri song Distance ^_^

Thanx


	6. Chapter 6

**I now pronounce you miserable**

**Chapter 6**

**Lovesick**

Syaoran had a way of inspiring an unsettling feeling within her. He mad her feel nervous in various ways. It was not only how he spoke to her, it was the things that he said and the way each statement was executed—with meaning and a hint of conviction. She could feel her heart thumping loud as he indirectly professed how much he adored her. She felt undeserving of his words and as the gray clouds came in stealing the little piece of sunshine they had been offered the past few days, she raised her head up and looked at him. He kicked the sand, his hands were in the pockets of his khaki pants and the silence between them slowly grew thick and disconcerting.

"Syaoran..." she said making a not so well thought out attempt to break through the barrier of uneasiness.

He averted his head and looked at her. His eyes were clear and eager.

She was not sure where she was taking this or why she felt the urge to say something to him...anything that would take her mind off how nervous she was feeling.

"Yes Sakura." He said standing motionless; he was waiting for something unexpected to happen. The way she said his name was different from the way she usually said it. There was uncertainty in her tone. This was strange because she had been confident and stubborn since the beginning of the honeymoon. "A difficult woman" as he once described her.

"How did you find out about me?" the words came, and on time "I mean...my parents never really talked to me about setting me up for an arranged marriage up until your family came along and requested me. You came out of nowhere and things happened very fast."

"I'll explain everything. Let's sit down."

They walked a few steps away from the shore and sat on the golden sand which was still damp from all the rain that had fallen the past few days.

"I knew about you long before my parents approached your family for your hand in marriage." he confessed.

She looked at him perplexed.

"Actually you were a waitress at the cafe on campus, at your University."

She was still confused "How do you know that? Have you been stalking me?"

He shook his head "No." he chuckled "It's nothing like that"

_**-FLASH BACK 4 years ago-**_

Every year an intervarsity debate tournament was held at selected Universities from different institutions to compete against each other. Universities across the world supplied their brightest students from debate student committees to compete for a title. It was not the first time Syaoran would be visiting Japan. His grandfather was Japanese so he had many family members present in the country. It was common for him to spend his summers there. At the time he met Sakura Kinomoto he was a freshman at Harvard. He was the only freshman competing in the debate. He was known for being argumentative and arrogant and his surname practically drew people to him.

It was no surprise that half of the students were intrigued by the handsome heir. He had recently shaved off his hair as a result of a freshman ritual for males at the University. He never thought that he would remember that day vividly. He remembered the feeling of power that flowed in his veins.

He walked into a cafe called Coffee Buzz with a group of new found friends who had suddenly started following him and invited him to their group. They sat at a booth by the window and talked about the debate tournament. They were loud and disrupted the other students. Syaoran was of course the centre of attention.

"When do you get your inheritance" one of the girls asked him bluntly.

He sat back and raised his shoulders. "That's a secret." He had never been too trusting of women, at the end of the day they were always more interested in his wealth than in him, he concluded from experience.

Suddenly a waitress appeared before them; he noticed her from the corner of his eye but carried on talking. She was petite...that was pretty much the only thing he noticed about the Japanese student. She crocked her head to the side trying to get the attention of the loud group. Syaoran averted his head and finally looked at her.

"Ahem..." she cleared her throat. The crowd made her feel insecure and unimportant as she awkwardly stood there.

Syaoran raised his eyebrow and that was when he got a perfect look at her. She was a striking beauty. She was hardly wearing any make up but yet she stood out like a soar thumb. Her eyes were bright emerald and her short hair looked almost golden as the sunrays shone upon it.

"Do you mind if I have your order?" she asked in a low unconfident tone.

He mused a saucy chuckle, and starred directly into her eyes "Sure. I'm from the Harvard University, maybe you've heard of it..." he said to her hoping she would be impressed.

She sighed "Can I have your order?"

He was surprised; he was not used to trying to get a womans' attention, usually they would make the first move. She clearly did not like him.

His so-called-friends laughed at him but he did not take them seriously.

He averted his gaze on her badge "Sakura...I'll have a Cappuccino, I'm paying for everyone." he said arrogantly.

'_What a douche!'_ Sakura thought.

She took everyone's order then left the table. Later she reappeared with their orders. There were five people on the table and their orders were outrageous.

They continued with their conversation, they laughed and argued.

Sakura stood behind the counter with the other waitress "You should tell them to keep it down."

Sakura gasped inwardly "No way. I find people like that intimidating."

"People like what?"

"The one guy, the skin head...I think he is supposed to be famous or something. He is such a jerk."

The other waitress stood on her toes and looked carefully at him "He's hot Sakura. Don't tell me you didn't notice."

Sakura pouted "No I didn't" she said honestly.

She took the tray from the counter with the rest of their orders "Wish me luck..."

She ambled to the table carefully however her hand started to tremble and the cup of coffee spilt and landed on Syaorans' chest.

His eyebrows rose "Shit! Are you trying to injure me?" he yelled at her with a glare on his face.

She put the tray on the table quickly and grabbed a napkin "I'm sorry" she said handing it to him. She was too afraid to touch him. His hand grazed over hers and she became nervous.

"What is wrong with you? You clumsy waitress!" he said through clenched teeth. He was trying to hold back his anger.

"I am so sorry" she said repetitively.

He stood up abruptly "where is the bathroom?"

She nervously pointed at it and took a deep breath. As she stood there the remaining group of people looked at her. They looked at her up and down, making sure their minds were perfectly recording how inadequate she was in their eyes.

"They should consider firing you." one of the girls said "Or you should just do everyone a favour and quit." she took a sip of her drink and added "Just some constructive piece of advice"

Sakura made a look of distaste and walked away. She wanted to cry. She had made up her mind; she did not like rich people. She would never marry for money because she could not imagine herself being associated with such egotistical and disrespectful people.

They sat there for another hour while she attended to other customers. On his way back from the bathroom Syaoran walked past her. He glared at her and then quickly walked past her.

When the time came to pay, Sakura handed him the bill. He searched for his wallet and commented "I hope you're not planning of spilling something else on me." he teased.

Sakura scowled.

He stuck his hands in his pocket but it was empty. He stood up and tried the back pockets of his trousers.

"Did any of you see where I left my wallet?" He asked his 'entourage'.

They all raised their shoulders and shook their heads.

One of them stood up "Listen dude, sort this out and I'll meet you in the conference centre. We have a debate in a few minutes." The others also stood up. They walked past him and said "You'll let us know how it works out" they laughed at him. As the group left cafe Syaoran overheard one of them say "He deserves it, arrogant bastard. How embarrassing"

He was surprised that none of them offered to pay or come to a compromise with him. They left him there looking like a fool. From that moment he learnt that people can be uncompassionate. The only reason they had hung around him and invited him to their group was because of his wealth.

Sakura watched the situation. She almost felt sorry for the guy.

He sat back on the chair in slow motion baffled. She walked away and carried on with her job. She could not help but stare at him every so often. She wondered what he was going to do next. He just sat there, staring blankly outside the window. She wondered what he thinking and was surprised at how quiet he was suddenly. He was a different person. He sat there until the cafe neared its close.

Sakura closed the door from the inside, the other waitress had left and it was her and the manager there. She walked up to him and said softly "We are closing."

He moved slightly and slowly looked at her "Oh, right."

"I know you can't pay." she said to him.

He was ashamed as he looked up at her. He recalled how badly he had treated her. As he stared at her it came to his attention how attracted he really was to her. She was a breath of fresh air, down to earth, cute, and coy, clumsy and yet he could tell she had a lot of spunk.

"So what's going to happen next? Are you going to call the police." he said in a light-hearted tone.

She placed her hands on her waist "I'm glad you are finding all this amusing." she said dryly in a sarcastic tone.

"Are those people really your friends?" She didn't mean to pry but then again she was in control of the situation. She could ask what ever she wanted.

He smiled at her and shook his head "No."

She was annoyed that he was smirking. She wanted him to be panicking and begging her for forgiveness for being a jerk.

"You teased me and made me feel like an idiot. You are just another arrogant rich kid with no respect for other people."

He watched her attentively as she waved her hands about. He was in no position to be defensive so he listened. Suddenly she took a deep breath and said in a calm tone

"Listen, you just can't treat people like that and you don't deserve to be treated like that either. You humiliated me...and well I know I'm clumsy, but it was an accident. You had no right to yell at me...you don't even know me. It doesn't matter who you are or where you're from, its important to be humble, kind and compassionate to others and perhaps more often than not you will receive the same kind of treatment.''

He looked at her surprised. He knew he would never forget those words. He was taken aback by this girl's behaviour, she didn't care who he was, she didn't even ask. Not even his parents lectured him about his behaviour and no one had ever shown concern towards him.

He had a blank expression for a moment as he cautiously swallowed the information. Then he said "You talk too much for a small girl."

She frowned and said "You enjoy watching me angry!" she said taking note of his sardonic eyes.

"Not even my parents have lectured me the way you have today, so yes it's kind of amusing to watch. You do realise that we are complete stranger" he said calmly.

She sighed "I don't care that we are" she tucked her hair behind her ear "I don't even think you are listening."

"I am." he assured her in a gentle tone.

She took a deep breath and said "You can pay off the debt by washing the dishes."

"Easy enough." He stood up.

"Follow me." she said.

He followed her to the kitchen where there was a stack of dirty plates and mugs. "They're all yours. If you need any help, I'll be sorting out the cash register" She was calmer in her disposition and friendlier.

"Alright." if he wanted to he could have just asked a relative of his to come bail him out of this situation or he would have spoken to the manager but he wanted to be there.

It seemed like he had been washing the dishes for hours now. There was still another stack left. During that time he thought hard about what Sakura said. Perhaps it was time for him to grow up and stop acting like his parents didn't bring him up properly.

He heaved a sigh and walked over to the kitchen door that was a jar. He watched Sakura as she wiped the tables. He watched her every movement carefully and thought of how amazing she was. He hardly knew her but he had a feeling that she was someone special. She caught him staring. She smiled at him and raised her head "Do you need help?"

"Uh..." he was unsure of what to say. He blushed.

She walked up to him "I'll help you. I do this almost everyday."

"Why do you work here...I heard waitresses get peanuts." he was able to ask a somewhat decent question.

"I have a feeling that your definition of peanuts and my definition of peanuts are extremely different...Baldy." she said teasing him.

He smiled "I had to shave my hair all off...it's this ritual for first years. I know I look strange and I'm sure I remind you of Lex luthor or some other comic book villain but underneath this baldness I'm a decent looking."

"Oh really." she said jokingly.

She helped him finish the dishes.

They had their first meaningful conversation, she told him things that he would consider personal but he loved listening to them. She told him that she is a psychology student although initially she wanted to study medicine. He learnt that she loves children and that she wants to get married to a man who is going to treat her right, who will respect her and love her. She told him that she wants to live in a house in the suburbs and wants to work but also wants to be there for her kids.

"These days, most women look down on you when you have such fantasies, they say things like you are old fashioned and you are limiting yourself but I don't see it that way. I think I have so much love in my heart that I want to share and it would be selfish and a waste to spend it all loving myself. Then again who knows, maybe a couple of years from now I will despise the idea of love and marriage. I might not even want to have kids out of fear that I'll loose my youth and figure...but right now, at this moment, that's not how I see it."

As she spoke, he knew immediately that he wanted the same thing. He wanted to be married and have kids...it was a basic aspiration in life but he agreed with Sakura, there was nothing wrong with that.

They spoke for an hour about random things. He barely spoke about himself. His life seemed boring and not all that extra-ordinary. It was the best conversation he had ever had. He found out that she was funny, kind and forgiving. Up to then he felt like no one had ever been sincere to him. She didn't compliment him or put me on a peddle stool. She was not afraid to tease him and for the first time in his life he felt normal and it felt good.

They said goodbye to each other outside the cafe door after she locked up.

"Will I ever see you again?" he asked her worryingly.

She smiled "I work here." she reminded him.

"I'm leaving for America in two days." he blushed and said "Aren't you the least bit curious to know what my name is?"

She smiled shyly "I'll sleep on it tonight and I'll tell you what I think your name is."

He looked down at pavement.

"Take care of yourself."

He raised his head "um...you too..."

He wanted to say more. He wanted to run after her and ask for her number but his feet suddenly became glued to the floor and he was lost for words. He watched her disappear into the night and wondered what tomorrow would hold. If anyone can make him a better person she could. He muttered her name, remembering the way it appeared on the name tag "Sakura Kinomoto"

The next day when he went to Coffee Buzz, he found that she was not there. The other waitress who worked there told him that Sakura went back home for a family emergency, that her grandmother had passed away. She have him her number. He was devastated. He was leaving for America the next day. He couldn't find the courage to call her. He kept her number in his journal with her name underneath it. With her grandmother passing he figured that it would be a bad time. He never lost anyone he knew, what was he going to say? Even if he summed up the courage to call her he would not know where to start.

Eventually he left Japan. A month passed and he started to feel like he had taken too long and it was too late to call. He was sure that by now she had forgotten about him.

Months after that, his parents started pressuring him about finding a wife. He met up with many women from the wealthiest families; models and duchess but none of them compared to Sakura. They were all shallow and superficial and he could not help but compare each one of them to her.

One day after four years of trying to find a wife for him, his father approached him. He was surprised that Syaoran had not made his choice yet and so many beautiful women wanted to marry him.

"There is no such thing as a perfect woman my Son. You just have to find one that is perfect for you." he settled on Syaorans bed "Do you even know what you want?"

"I want Sakura Kinomoto." He said painfully. "If I have to marry anyone it is her." He never intended to speak his thoughts out. He felt pathetic for even considering a woman he only met once four years ago.

"Who is Sakura Kinomoto?" his father asked bewildered.

He shrugged and simply said "No one."

What Syoaran didn't know was that his father never forgot that name. He went into full frontal investigation to find out who she was and eventually he found out things about her from a private investigator who had found out that she was a student at the University of Tokyo.

Syaoran's father and mother approached Sakura's parents and made the proposal. Her parents were reluctant at first but they eventually gave in to the idea. The next thing he knew, they were telling him to pack his bags and that he was going to Japan to meet his bride to be.

He was annoyed that they had set him up with someone without his approval but they were persistent that he would like her. They went to her house and met up with her parents and then he met her. She didn't recognise him at all but he was fine with that.

_**-END OF FLASHBACK-**_

Sakura's mouth was wide open. She could not believe it but it made sense. She remembered how the waitresses often teased her about him and tried to encourage her to find him. She could not do anything; she did not know his name. Through out the time she worked there, a part of her always hoped that he would walk in.

He was quiet after that and so was she as she was still trying to digest his story. Suddenly raindrops started to pour. They both stood up.

"I think its going to rain again" she said to him.

The raindrops started to fall hard. The couple ran back to the hotel room. By the time they got there they were completely soaked. They both rushed to the bathroom and took out some towels. Sakura shivered wrapping the towel around her body and he threw the towel over his face.

She was so cold she was shivering and her teeth gnashed against each other. He walked up to her and held both of her hands in his and blew on them. For a moment she felt like a little girl. Her cheeks turned red as he blew on them as though it was nothing. Her mouth was slightly open and there it was again. That nervous unsettling feeling he invoked in her.

He stopped when he saw the look on her face. Beads of sweat came up to his face and he said "Sorry." He released her hand "I should have asked."

She shook her head and placed her hands on the side. All of this time she had taken Syaoran's feeling as a joke. Sometimes she would think about them and simply laugh at how ridiculous she had thought he was but now it was different. She looked down at the tiles on the bathroom floor and she knew that he had won her over. She tried her best to find a rash reasonable explanation but her mind and heart wouldn't let her.

"You really do love me?" she asked him looking down.

He said nothing. He took another towel and threw it on her head "You don't want to get sick."

She looked into his eyes and flushed coyly.

"I don't want to ever hurt again..." she confessed not sure what she was saying but tears came to her eyes.

He forced her into his arms and muttered "I'll look after you."

She buried her head in his chest and felt like she was home and more tears came to her eyes. She closed her eyes and simply allowed herself to be loved.

He released her. She didn't want him to.

He looked up at her, he was everything she wanted and needed. He said all the right things at the right time. Maybe subconsciously she wanted him to put her back together and yet she had was waiting for him to push her away.

He caressed her temples with his fingers; he handled her as though she was glass.

She was motionless.

He moved his face into hers and gently touched her lips with his. She kept her eyes open for a moment. When she started to close them, she took a step back and pushed him away with her hands.

"Don't" she told him.

He stood there feeling ashamed and puzzled. He was certain in his mind that it had been the perfect time to execute a kiss.

"I can't do this." Sakura was afraid of what she was feeling at that moment. How could her feelings be so fickle? Did this mean that her feelings for Yukito were not real and how was she to know that the feelings she feeling for Syaoran were genuine, that they were not there temporary, they came on so quickly and she was not sure if she could trust them.

"I'm not going to apologise for kissing you...if that's what you are expecting." he said to her.

She walked past him and marched quickly to the door. He watched her scrutinising her with his amber eyes. She opened the door and left the room. He did not move; he knew it was pointless to run after her. She needed time to think this through.

Sakura walked around the lobby confused. Her clothes were still drenched and bangs of her hair clung to her smooth face. She sat on the couch and pondered carefully what her next move should be. If she wanted to she could leave, go back home and get an annulment. She could try to find Yukito and confront him about what he did and then, perhaps she would get closure and find the courage to move on. Or...she could always go back into the room and do what her heart was pleading her to do.

She walked over to the door and slowly opened it.

The room was dim and Syaoran was sleeping on the couch. Her eyes motioned themselves to him. He was lying on his back looking peaceful. A smiled appeared on her face as she slowly closed the door and took off her shoes. She walked over to the couch and knelt right next to him. She made sure she was discreet and quiet.

She moved her face over his and reached her trembling hand out to touch the locks of his chestnut hair.

He slowly opened his eyes; he could feel her warm breath on his face.

"You're back." he said in a half whisper.

She nodded and then gently pressed her lips against his.

...

To be continued


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

I now pronounce you miserable

The feeling of loving you

Sakura and Syaoran were completely lost in each other. Syaorans' hands grasped her delicate waist firmly as he moved in closer to kiss her more. He had allowed the kiss to be patient and gentle for long enough but now he was starving for her and he could not take the slow pace. He wanted to feel her more and more.

She broke the kiss reluctantly and rested her hands of his chest as she stared into his eyes. Her face was flushed and she was out of breath. The feeling was exhilarating.

Sakura smiled patiently at him.

He reached his hand out and touched her cheek and then he said in a tired tone "I knew you would come back...I just knew it."

She held his hand "You won be over long before today."

He arched an eyebrow "When?"

"That day when I kissed you and you kissed me back. Since then..." she paused and stared directly into his eyes "I had been trying to fight the way I feel about you." she dropped her head onto his chest "I don't think I can do that anymore. Its so much easier giving in and I'm happy." she spoke softly "I'm happy to be like this with you."

Sakura's breath got caught in her throat. All she wanted was for this nice piece of guy to hold her and touch her. She gave a slight shudder and slightly closed her bright emerald eyes.

He gently stroked the back of her neck. Her clothes were still wet as was her hair but he didn't mind. He just wanted to hold her. Too many times he had thought of touching her that may, of feeling her skin to his hearts content.

There was something innocent about what was happening between them and she was able to relax.

She abruptly sat up surprising him "I'm getting you all wet!" she exclaimed apologetically.

He gave her a friendly chuckle and said "I really don't mind."

"I'll go change." she could not help but suddenly feel a little cautious around him. She could not walk around the hotel room anymore with her hair in a mess and her mediocre clothes. She walked off and he watched disappear out of the room with a cheeky smirk on the corner of his lips. There was yet a sense of fear of the unknown that rushed through his veins. Not know where this was leading and how their story would end.

Sakura returned in her usual night gown which she suddenly hated. It was yellow with teddy bear prints. She felt like it was a little bit childish.

She sat next to him and he moved in and kissed her once more. As the kiss died out slowly, he lay back and allowed her to lie on his chest once more.

"Good night Syaoran." she said, her heart was pounding in her throat.

He wrapped his hands around her and held unto tightly. She could hear him smile.

There was no need for words. The moment spoke for itself.

"Good night Sakura."

...

That morning, Sakura found herself tucked comfortably in their super sized bed. She recalled falling asleep in Syaoran's arms on the couch the night before. She assumed that he carried her into bed. She sat up then got out of bed and ambled to the lounge.

"Good; you're up!" Syaoran said elated appearing out of nowhere. He was in his was only wearing denim trousers and was holding his cell phone is his hand. "I was starting to think you would never get up."

She smiled and her cheeks turned a pale red. "What time is it?"

"Its 11:00"

Sakura's eyebrows shot up.

"The hurricane is officially over. Since we have 2 more days on the Island I was thinking we go to Lanai."

"Where is that?" she asked.

"It's a small Island. It's known as the Pineapple Island. We can fly there today, spend the two nights there and we'll be back the day we leave for Japan."

She smiled "Sounds good."

He placed his hand of her hips then kissed her "Get ready, the helicopter leaves in an hour." The kiss caught her off guard but she quickly went along with it.

They took a cab to the airport and took a helicopter off the Island. Sakura was a somewhat fearful at first but he kept her calm by holding her hand throughout the ride. The pilot told them about the Island and folk lore.

"Where are we going to stay?" she asked him smiley faced.

He looked into her eyes holding her hand "My grandfather has a cottage there...he owns a portion of the land" he smirk and added "He is not there though so...it's just going to be us. I hope you packed your swimming suit because I have so many things planned."

"Like?"

"Well, scrubber diving. Snorkelling, surfing, boat rides..."

"Wow...that is a lot of stuff for two more days." she said.

"I thinks its time you see how amazing Hawaii is. We spent most of the honeymoon indoors."

She nodded excitably.

They reached the yellow wooden beach house and quickly put their things down before running to the beach. They did everything he set out for them to do. To much of her surprise they managed to do so much in one day. When the day was over as the sun set, he borrowed her his jumper and she wore it over her bathing suit. He carried her over his back and they playfully giggled at the various moments that day.

When they returned to the house, he put her down at the porch and they stared up at the horizon. Sakura could not recall a day as perfect as this.

"I'm happy to be here...with you." she said still staring up ahead.

He averted his head to look at her for a moment and he smiled to himself. He wondered about her ex lover suddenly, if he ever got her to smile that way and he hoped in his heart he didn't. Now that he was hers, he was allowed to be selfish and jealous of the possibility of anyone else being in her life.

She stood on her toes and pressed her hands on the bar stand.

He moved closer to her and took her hand and she abruptly looked at him "What is it?" she blushed.

"You blush so easily." he commented.

"Well...it's not my fault." she said turning her face aside "It's your fault."

He leaned into her and kissed her lips. It had been the first time they had really kissed since their first moment the day before. She pressed her body against his and kissed him back.

That evening they sat on the beach on a blanket sitting directly under the stars. They were sitting on a blanket as the sound of the crashing waves broke the silence. He sad down hugging her legs and he lay on his back next to her with his hand resting on her back.

"I think after I finish my studies I'm going home. When I was young I always felt like a fish out of water. I wanted nothing more that to leave my home town. After living in Tokyo for three and a half years I don't think I want to actually live there." she said honestly "I want to be home."

"What's wrong with Tokyo?" he asked her caressing her back.

"It's crowded, loud and everyone is so much into trends...I can't keep up with that life style. I think I like simplicity. I do want to travel...you live in Hong Kong right?"

He nodded "Yes. I bet you're wondering what is going to happen to us."

She nodded "It did cross my mind." she averted her body to look at him.

"I can move here or you can come with me to Hong Kong, which ever suits you."

"What about what suits you?"

He sighed "I like Japan and China respectively, they each have their perks and it doesn't take long for me to settle down, after all I have duel citizenship. But if you don't want to leave your home land I'm okay with that."

"You would move for me?"

"Yes." he said confidently.

She smiled at him tucking her hair behind her ear.

"So...we have a day to go before our flight back to japan." she pointed out.

He nodded "Yeah."

"And we are going to live together."

"If it suits you."

She looked away for a moment "I've never lived with a man before. It's kind of a big deal."

"Yeah, it is...we can take things slow." he said. He didn't want her stressing about the marriage expectations.

"I'm fine with it." she said.

He raised an eyebrow.

"It is about time this girl stopped playing it safe." she said.

He sat up "Sakura, I...lo.."

She placed her index finger on his lips and he kept quiet.

"I don't want you to say you love me. Those are not the words I want to hear from you. Its not that I don't want you to say them, you just have to show me how you feel. More than words make this real for me. So you don't have to tell me you love me." she smiled "I already know."

She leaned in and kissed him gently and he put his arms around her and pulled her closer.

...

That morning, Sakura woke up in Syaorans' arms. He was still fast asleep and the wind blew up in their direction. She opened her eyes not sure if she should move or not. She thought of the events of the previous night. It was a good thing they had that part of the beach to themselves and it was practically deserted otherwise they would have been in trouble because of what they did the previous night. She blushed then beamed.

She dated Yukito for 3 years and never felt all that tempted to give him her virginity, also he had promised her brother who was mortified when they started dating that he would only sleep with her after they got married. Here she was in another mans arms after a night of complete fulfilment. It automatically happened, not much thought went into it. It just felt right.

She moved her body a little and he opened his chocolate eyes slowly. He kissed her cheek then he kissed her shoulder. She shuddered under his touch and smiled.

He sat up and stared up ahead and she mimicked him after that.

"It's so beautiful. Hawaii is the most beautiful place I've ever been."

He looked at her "We can spend all of our summers here if you want."

"I'd love that."

They eventually stood up and folded the blanket as they walked into the beach house. They had a short conversation. Nothing about the night before was mentioned. They smiled and joked with each other. She kept her eyes fixed on his clothes and recalled in her mind the excitement that rushed through her blood as she took it off. Her mind vividly replayed the image of his chiselled chest pressed against her naked body as he drowned her in his kiss. She recalled the way he pushed his pelvis into her letting her know the extent of his desire.

As he opened the door she thought of the way his hands roamed all over her body. She imagined the feeling of his strong, calloused hands as they started at her naked thighs and gently probing and moving upwards. Her breath was caught in her throat. She knew she should be afraid but somehow she didn't care. His touch was experienced and so sure. Her pulse was pounding and she felt his knowing fingers caress her abdomen, ribcage and then as he cupped her firm breasts in his hand she inhaled sharply. She felt oddly trusting and expectant of him. He was the type of man who can look into your soul, the type of man who owned you just with one look.

She swallowed hard as she slowly lost focus and track of this casual conversation.

As he pushed the door open she studied his body carefully. Those broad shoulders she held unto, the back she racked her fingers into as the little bit of pain turned blissful and the feeling of his legs as they grazed over hers. She was starting to feel a tingling sensation in her spine, similar to what she had felt the night before.

Even the sound of her own voice brought back memories, she remembered the moans and deep breathes she took.

She folded her hands and smiled to herself.

"What are you smiling about?"

She walked over and held his hand "Nothing."

"What do you want for breakfast…there is nothing to eat here so are you fine with us finding a diner."

"Sure." she said.

He walked up to her and took her hand "But first we need to clean up."

"Yes!" Sakura gulped nervously. She was transparent and she expected him to tease her about it. He just laughed it off.

"I'd shower with you but if I do we probably won't leave the house for the rest of the day so you go on ahead."

…..

At the diner, she feasted on a large plate of pan cakes with blue berries. She put syrup over it squeezing the bottle with all her might. He on the other hand had bacon, eggs and toast. They sat at booth by the window.

"I am starving." she said.

"I can see that." he teased her.

She stuck her fork in the pan cakes and said "You know you want some and I bet you think I'm so sexy when I'm eating pan cakes."

"Maybe if you added whip cream over it." he took a sip of his drink.

She gave him a cute sarcastic grin.

"You should probably hurry up."

She raised her eyebrows chewing her food.

"I just want to take you back to the beach house and well…I think I'd rather spend the day in bed." he confessed. "I'm loosing it just staring at you."

She gave him a naughty grin.

He cleared his throat and sat back.

"No…I'm joking. Take you're time." he said casually.

She shook her head "You're not."

Suddenly her cell phone rang. She took it out of her pocket and looked at the screen.

"Unknown number." she said. She answered it "Hello."

"Oh thank god you picked up."

"Huh…" Sakura asked confused.

"It's me babe, its Yukito. I'm here to get you, come outside. I'm outside you're hotel room."

Sakura's heart started to beat fast and she looked at Syaoran sitting across her. He looked at her for a moment then carried on eating his food. She had long recognized Yukito's voice. She just didn't want to accept it.

She stood up and said "Excuse me."

She left the booth and walked outside. "What…what are you doing here?"

"I told you. I'm here to get you. Are you surprised?"

"Yes." she said angrily.

"Calm down. I knew what I was doing; you didn't think I ditched you?" he said calmly in his usual composed tone.

She bit her nails, her fingers were shaking. "I did think you left me behind. I'm married now! do you know what that means."

"Yes…I figured that; you can get a divorce. You can leave the ass hole and claim that the marriage was forced, that it was duress. We will sort all that stuff when I see you. Now come downstairs."

"How did you find out where I was?"

He sighed "Sakura, we can discuss this when we meet. It was all part of my plan."

"I'm not there." she said.

"Where are you?"

"I can't tell you." she said.

"You don't seem happy to be hearing from me."

She placed her hand over her forehead "I'm just surprised." tears started to fill her eyes "You broke my heart."

"I know…but once I tell you what happened you will understand why I did it. I'll just wait for you here."

"I have to go." she said cancelling the call. She was distraught to hear Yukito say that. He never spoke ill of people unless it was true.

"Sakura, listen to me, what ever you do don't trust that guy. Wait till I tell you how twisted the Li family is…you won't believe it."

She stood there shocked. She didn't know what to do or if she should tell Syaoran. She took a deep breath and tried to blink the tears away. She walked back into the diner and smiled.

"Who was it?" he asked her.

"A friend from Japan." she said briskly.

She sat down and he watched her carefully. She seemed somewhat different and a little bit shaken. The look on her face changed and he could tell that she was trying hard to act non-chalet. He was tempted to tell her that it was unnecessary for her to lie to him that he would take it like a man. Instead he held back and said. "You want more pan cakes."

"No." she said trying to laugh like before.

He reached out his fork and ripped off a piece and ate it "These are fantastic."

As he stared at her, laughing it all away and trying to milk the moment for what it was worth, he knew something was going to go wrong and he could already feel his heart slowly starting to break.

….

to be continued

**Authors Note: Thanks for all the support. I was experiencing writers block. It took forever to write this chapter. Reviews please. **


	8. Chapter 8

**I now pronounce you miserable**

**Chapter 8**

**Heartbeat slowing down**

Sakura said nothing.

However she was not a difficult woman to read. It had only been ten days since their arranged marriage and he felt like he had known her longer. They were back at the beach house. She preoccupied herself by packing her clothes. He saw right through it, she was trying to avoid the issue that was underlying.

Her mood changed drastically within an hour; One minute they were enjoying their honeymoon and each others company and then suddenly, after a mysterious phone call she became more quiet and distant. They were intending to stay in bed all day making love but suddenly she said she was not in the mood and blamed the weather for it.

After he kissed her she broke the kiss and said "Can we...not do that? I feel a little fatigue." she told him holding her hand over her head.

He rose an eyebrow 'Um, should I get you a glass of water.'

'No, that won't be necessary.'

He left the matter alone. There was no point in being persistent about intimacy; it killed the whole point of it.

He ambled up to their bedroom. She was lying on her back on the double bed. When she saw him, she closed her eyes and pretended to sleep.

He chuckled, just to see if he was going to get a reaction but she did not flinch. He lay next to her, kissed her cheek and moved in closer to place his hand on her bare shoulder.

"What's wrong?" he said "I know you are awake and I know something is wrong." he told her moving away from her slowly and laying his head on the pillow. "You're not even sleeping." he said calmly "Tell me, did I do something to upset you...or was it that phone call you took earlier today."

"I think we should get an annulment."

He looked up at the ceiling. He did not move.

"I know yesterday I told you I was fine if we stayed married but now that I think of it, we don't really know each other."

He remained quiet.

She sat up and looked at him "Do you even know what my favourite colour is? My favourite movie?"

"We can always learn that stuff as he...you know...go with it."

She heaved a sigh "I like you Syaoran, I might even..." she turned her head away "It's too soon."

"This all has to do with that phone call?" he said not looking at her.

Tears came to the jars of her eyes and she did not understand why she was getting emotional.

She nodded "It was my...my previous boyfriend."

Syaoran looked at her, raised an eyebrow and said "And?"

"He is here to take me back."

Syaoran clenched his jaw. There was a moment of silence as tears spilled down Sakura's face unto her cheeks. She wanted to stop crying. She wiped away the tears on her cheeks.

He looked at her and sat up until his head was levelled with hers "Its not a difficult choice to make...why are you crying." he kept a steady tone.

She sniffled "It's not that easy."

"It is." he said slowly turning away from her once more "I actually shouldn't be telling you what to do. You should know better. He broke your heart. He abandoned you Sakura." he raised his tone mid sentence.

"He said he didn't betray me, he knew what he was doing." she said calmly.

"That's bullshit. Enlighten me...why did he leave you?" Syaoran raised his voice a little.

Sakura raised her head to look at him.

"Tell me." he demanded.

"He said that your family paid him to stay away from me."

Syaoran stood up and looked at Sakura calmly "You don't really believe that do you?"

She raised her shoulders and mumbled "I don't know...I mean I don't know you that well."

"I've been nothing but honest with you from the start."

"You don't get it, Yukito isn't just some guy. I was with him for three years. You and I both know I wouldn't even be here is your family was not powerful. I would have been with him."

"I can't believe that after everything we've been through you would say something like that." his features softened and she could see his pain. She got off the bed and tried to pull him into her arms for a hug but he pushed her away.

Tears filled her eyes "I'm sorry."

"It doesn't matter now!" he said angrily with sad eyes.

"If you want to be with this guy just say saw. Don't point the finger at my family. The choice is up to you."

"I'm a realist Syaoran! I don't believe that it can work!"

Syaoran looked at her meaningfully and then he turned his back and walked away. Sakura ran after him "We can just be friends."

"You're unfair, I've never wanted to be you're friend." he walked quickly downstairs and she followed him.

"When this guy throws you away...I'm not going to take you in." he said "I'm not you're rebound and I should have just left you alone from the beginning. If one thing is clear, all the effort was not worth it and everything I thought you felt about me was not real. I know I'm asking too much by asking you to love me but if you knew it was not possible between us then you should not have kissed me or nonetheless slept with me."

Sakura was confused. She was not sure if she should be listening to her heart or her mind. At this moment she had done her worst.

He stopped in his tracks and she stopped behind him. He turned around and said "I'm not going to try with you anymore. You are going to be free."

She said nothing and he suck his hands in his pocket and took out a wallet.

"Here is some cash." he said taking her hand and forcing the money into her hands. "This should be enough for you to catch a plane to the main Island and then to the airport."

"Where are you going?"

"I'm going to pack my things and pretend this never happened." he told her walking away "I lost."

She bit back on more tears and ran her hands over her eyes "How can I explain this to you without making it look like I'm giving up on us."

"You are giving up on us, you can't have the both of us." he said. "You don't trust your feelings for me and I know that once you see this guy, you won't ever be coming back to me."

She stood there frozen, uncertain of what to say. He walked past her. After a few minutes he came out of the bedroom with his suitcase.

"I'll file you the annulment papers."

Sakura nodded tear eyed.

He turned around and took one last look at this tragic woman standing before me. He had never seen her so distraught and yet he had never felt the pain he felt at that moment. His heart was beating and he could feel it breaking into tiny pieces. He turned away and as he started walking she raised her voice and said "Wait!"

He stopped in his tracks.

"Where are you going?"

"Hong Kong."

There was silence between them and then he said. "Did you for a moment feel like you really loved me?"

Every part of her was screaming "yes" but when she opened her mouth to speak, nothing came out. She blinked for a moment and then he was gone.

...

When she reached the main Island, she found Yukito sitting in the reception area. He was holding a satchel bag and staring blankly ahead. She looked at him teary eyed. She brushed the tears away and tried to compose herself.

He turned his head and saw her. His vision met hers and he smiled from ear to ear.

He walked up to her and hugged her. She did not hug him back. He kissed her forehead. He always made her feel like a kid.

She looked into his face with uncertainty.

"What's wrong?" he said slowly releasing her.

"You've been crying my little monster." he said placing his hand on her head. He was much taller than her. He patted her head and said "I'm here now, I'm sorry for what you went through." He had always treated her like this, like she was his little sister. The same way Touya treated her.

She punched his chest and sobbed "Why did you leave me!"

"Hey, relax." he hugged her "There there, don't be such a baby Sakura. It was ten days in Hawaii. I knew what I was doing."

'_You drove me into another man's arms'_ she thought

"What happened?" she asked.

He looked around "Where is your so-called husband." he teased her ignoring her question.

"I'm glad you find it all amusing." she said dryly composing herself "He went back to Hong Kong."

"Did you tell him I was here to take you back?"

Sakura nodded as a mental image of the earlier events came to her mind.

Sakura shook her head and walked past him "I still have things upstairs in the hotel room. We can chat properly there."

When she reached the hotel room, she could feel a sharp pain in her heart. The place did not feel the same without him there. She proceeded with what she was supposed to be doing and tried to ignore it.

"A week before the wedding the Li family...his parents found out that we are a couple. Their son was so excited and in love that they didn't want to tell him the bad news. Instead they asked me leave you alone and gave me a lot of money which..."

"You took." Sakura interrupted angrily.

"But I gave it back Sakura...every penny."

"You still took it." she hunched a shoulder and turned her head away

"I am in debt, I was thinking about us. How can I take care of you if I don't have the means, the last company I worked for had to downsize and I was laid off. Love is not enough, it won't pay the rent."

Sakura said nothing for a few seconds she kept her eyes fixed on him "But you gave me away. What you did was selfish. I can take care of myself. You drove me straight into another mans arms."

He had lines of stress on his forehead "I knew you would say that. I'm sorry. Now I have a job and we can get married like we had planned."

"And if you didn't get the job?" she asked in a stern tone.

He kept quiet.

She stood up "I'm going to pack my things."

"When did you become so difficult?"

He followed her to the bedroom. She started to open the chest drawers "Where did you sleep when you two were together."

"At first he slept on the couch then later we slept on the same bed." she said in a stern tone.

He folded his hands "Why did you do that?"

She raised her shoulders opening her suitcase now.

"Don't be like that Sakura. Why do I get this weird feeling that something happened between you two?"

"It doesn't matter."

"So something did happen." Yukito speculated.

She found herself becoming weak again, she wanted to cry.

Tears filled her eyes and she said "I made a mistake. I should have just said I love him...why did allow myself to get so confused." he leaned his back to the wall "Are you really that angry at me."

She shook her head "I'm not angry at you."

She stood still "I'm angry at myself."

"I'm trying to be happy that I am with you and I'm trying to believe that that's enough for me."

"It's not?" he said calmly.

She shook her head "Being with Syaoran was enough for me. I was happy with him. The only reason I'm here is because...as usual I decided to go with the safe choice. The good guy I've been with for three years."

"What are you saying? Are you in love with this other guy?"

She looked at Yukito and said "I don't want us to be together, even if I don't know if I will ever see Syaoran. For the first time someone gave me butterflies in my stomach."

"So you are going to throw away what we built in three years."

"Yukito..it took 10 days away from you for me to realise that this is not what I want."

"Sakura, you are confused."

"I was this morning but now I know what I want. I thought that once I saw you, all the regret would disappear but it's even worse. "

"What do you want...that guy."

"Yes." she replied.

...

To be continued


	9. A movie script ending

**I now pronounce you miserable**

**Chapter 9**

**A movie script ending**

Nothing had changed since he left home. The people and places all looked the same. If anything had changed it was him. He was not sure anymore if Hong Kong was where he wanted to be. The humiliation of coming home without his so-called-bride and the pitiful faces were the last thing he needed. His insides ached and all he wanted was to stay in the cab parked a few blocks from his family home. He laid his head back on the seat and heaved a sigh.

"Do you plan to ever get out? I have other customers." the taxi driver grumbled.

Syaoran sat up "Give me a second." he stressfully ran his hands through his hair.

"Listen kid, you've been saying that for the past hour. Just go home."

He nodded and muttered "You're right. Please drive me two more blocks down the road and turn right."

As the taxi driver started his engine, Syoaran bit his thumb hard and stared out. The large metal black gates opened and the taxi drove into the estate. Everything felt like it was moving in slow motion. He stared at the yard and the trees. This was it, the place where he grew up, yet he still felt like a stranger and somewhat a failure.

The taxi stopped at a halt in front of the main door. He took a deep breath and opened the door to get out. He grabbed his luggage and paid the driver. The moment he started thinking he was gaining confidence, the feelings of not wanting to be there re-emerged and he found himself standing frozen in front of the big brown wooden door.

Suddenly the door opened and his mother, Yelan was staring back at him. She had her hair done, beauty queen style, she looked almost elegant and he felt like he was a little boy again standing there helplessly.

"Syaoran, what are you doing here? Did you not say you were moving to Japan?"

He stretched his lips to a fake grin "I'm not..." he could never allow anyone to see his vulnerability, not even her.

"I'm confused; where is Sakura?"

He walked past her "Gone. She decided she didn't love me."

Yelan closed the door and followed him "What do you mean?"

"Did you and father pay her previous boyfriend money to stay away from her?" he looked at her meaningfully.

From the look on her face, he knew the allegations were true.

"So you knew all along that she had a boyfriend."

Yelan took his hand "I'll make you some tea; you look depressed."

"No mother!" he exclaimed "This is all you and father's fault. You made me marry someone who was in love with someone else."

"Listen, your father and I know how much you love her. It was in your best interest. It had been so long since I saw you as happy as you were the day you found out you were engaged to her and frankly, we thought she was the perfect girl for you."

"That's not the point." he said. He walked into the living room and sat down. She stood next to him. He buried his head in his hands.

"You're father and I can go talk to her." she suggested "tell her she is better off with you."

"No...I don't want you intervening in my relationships anymore."

She sat next to him "Well, you'll meet someone else who will..."

"I'm not interested in marriage anymore." he interrupted her.

"But Syaoran, you can't think that way. Its one girl, your heart will heal and..."

He removed his hands from his face and said "I want to focus on my career." he stood up "Well done. I would have been better off not marrying her in the first place, at least it would have been easier for me to accept there was another man, but then I got to spend time with her and you know what I learnt..." he tucked his hands in the pocket of his trousers "I really love her, I wasn't over my head. She was not what I expected but the person she turned out to be was better than the person I imagined her to be. You should have seen us Mother, we were so happy." There was a glass of tears over his eyes.

"I can see you are hurting."

"I don't want to hear anything about marriage and Sakura. I wish none of it happened; that way it would not hurt so much. "

He left the room.

He ambled upstairs to his room. He sat on the bed and then lay on his back. He muttered "Sakura...you could be happy right now...I'll never know." he closed his eyes and he imagined her in another mans arms. When he closed his eyes, it was like a dark paradise, there was no Sakura...except in his mind.

"_If she was here beside me, instead of Japan...if the curve of her was curved on me, I'd tell her that I loved her, before I ever knew her because I loved the simple thought of her. And even though the words you did not say have not left me, I want more than anything than to be with you. But I have to face the truth, is over...I'm not even if it was there to begin with. "_

He fell asleep on the bed and the next time his eyes were open, his father was standing in front of him. He was staring at him with pitiful eyes. He did not know the meaning of heartbreak, he married his first love. He would not be able to understand what Syaoran was going through.

"We will get the marriage annulled Son." he placed a strong arm on his shoulder "Tomorrow you start work at Li Corp, I think that will keep your mind preoccupied for now. It will just be induction training and you can attend the board meeting. One day, you will be running the company."

Syaoran sat up "Alright."

...

**Next morning at Li Corp...**

Meiling strolled through the hallways of the office when she saw a familiar face. She had not seen him for years. She waved her hand and screamed across the office "Syaoran Li! Syaoran Li!" she said running.

Meiling was a tall slender woman with long black hair and golden cat like eyes. Her beauty however was always overshadowed by her vibrant and loud personality.

The moment he saw her, his eyebrow rose and she flung her arms around his neck and forced herself into his arms. As she hugged him and talked about how long it had been since they had seen each other, he rolled his eyes and tried to push her away. She was suffocating him.

While she released him he gave her a polite smile "Meiling, how are you?"

She took a deep breath "I'm fine." She grabbed his hand "Let's go talk in the break room." She was completely ignorant of the fact that he was talking to someone else. She pulled him away and started talking like she was racing against time "You are working here now right? It had to happen, I always looked forward to the day I see you again. It's nice you are finally taking interest in your ancestors' establishment. You look nice, what brand is that? Mark Jacobs? Versace?" she spoke so fast he could not get a word in.

They entered the break room and she practically pushed him in and closed the door.

"So, are the rumours true?"

"Uh...wow, you're still the same aren't you?"

She croaked her head and grinned "Come on, I'm a little bit more mature."

He grinned at her "Sure you are." he said sarcastically "you are still as talkative and you still love gossip."

She cleared her throat "I can understand why you would worry about talking to me about your personal life. I am happily engaged now and I'm not going to sell your story to the press if that's what you are worried about. But you do realise that eventually it will be front page news of every gossip magazine in Hong Kong."

He shook his head "I'm not telling you anything."

She sighed and went over to the kitchen to make coffee "I heard you got married."

Syaoran walked over to counter.

"I also heard you were dumped." she said contentedly.

He turned his face away from her "Who tells you these things?"

"A source." she handed him a cup of coffee and he casually accepted.

"This is the happiest day ever."

He took a sip of the strong dark coffee "It's good to hear that you are finding all this amusing."

"You know, I've looked forward to the day when you know how it feels like to love someone and have your heart broken after what you did to me 7 years ago. By now I would have had my own little Syaoran and perhaps I would have been pregnant with another one."

"Please don't put such disturbing mental images in my head." he said dryly. "I can't believe you are not over it."

"How can I get over it? Have you met you?"

He chuckled "You've always been a little obsessed with me."

She playfully punched him on the shoulder "I was not obsessed, I was in love. I heard you were obsessed with that woman you married."

His face became serious and he said "I don't want to talk about it. I know you live for moments like these."

She mused a saucy chuckled "On the bright side, you lasted longer than Kim Kardashian and what's his name."

He was despondent and quiet.

She was silent for a moment and then she said softly.

"Don't you ever miss us?"

Syaoran nearly choked on his coffee "We dated for a week." he raised an eyebrow and murmured "You're insane." He might have teased Meiling confidently but deep down, he was starting to understand how she might have felt. It was not crazy to not want to let go of someone.

She raised a shoulder and said softly "Yeah we dated but even more importantly, we have been friends since we were kids. Sure I've been chasing you since I was a little girl and you have been pushing me away for as long as I can remember but despite that, those are some of my best memories."

He nodded agreeably.

"I'm glad you are working here." she said. "Now, stop being so grumpy"

He kept drinking his coffee. For once, he felt like he didn't really mind tuning in Meilings' rumblings.

"This girl you married must really be full of herself. I saw a picture of her and she is not all that attractive but then again she is Japanese, all Japanese girls think they are so cute." she paused "But I supposed if you're into muscular looking women then you would find her desirable."

"Meiling, stop being such a jealous bitch."

She laughed "I'm not being jealous. I'm engaged remember and I'm trying to cheer you up."

...

In Japan...

"Kero!"

Sakura popped her head outside her bedroom window. She had not seen her ginger cat Kero ever since she got back from Hawaii. It was a warm summer's day in Tomoeda. A day suited to be lazing around to house in denim shorts and a vintage t-shirt.

She walked downstairs and before she entered the kitchen, she heard someone say her name. It was her father.

"What do you think happened?" Her Fujikatak asked Nadeshiko.

"Who knows, she has not said a word about it. I can't help but feel as though she is pretending to be fine, but I know Sakura. I heard her crying in the bathroom the other day."

"Crying?" he paused "I told Touya to ask Yukito, apparently he is the one that dropped her home. He broke up with her and clearly she is no longer with the Li kid."

"Every time I ask her about it she says she's not in the mood to talk about it."

Sakura took a deep breath and sighed silently. She wanted to run back upstairs and burry her face in her pillow and scream into it. She entered kitchen casually, acting like she did not overhear them.

"Have you seen Kero?" she asked walking up to the fridge.

"He should be outside, try the neighbour's yard." her mother said.

"I'll go look for him." she took out a bottle of fruit juice and closed the fridge door.

As she was about to walk away, Fujitaka said "So honey, what have you been up to since you came back. You've been so distant and you haven't been around much."

She turned around and smiled "I'm studying for my semester test; I've been at the library. I missed some classes so I have to catch up...oh and I'm starting work at that restaurant I used to work at."

"Why?"

"I'm saving up for a trip." and with those words, she disappeared.

She managed to find her pet cat. She thanked the neighbours for letting her in their yard and she carried him back to the house to the backyard. She lay down on the hammock and sat kero on her lap. As she patted him, she stared up at the sky.

"Tomorrow it's back to school for me." she said. "Two more months and I will be done with college."

The branches of the tree shadowed her face.

"I miss him...and I don't really want to talk about it. Yukito hates me now and the trip back was very awkward. He didn't say a word to me." she patted kero and he purred "Being married to him made me happy and you know what Kero, even though I can't be with him now, I haven't given up." she said looking at her cat "I'm going to work hard so I make enough money to go to Hong Kong and find him, I'll do what ever it takes to see him."

Kero meowed and then Sakura laughed "Oh my god. I need human interaction. I'm talking to my cat."

...

"So you are going to Hong Kong at the end of the month to find you're prince charming. That is the most romantic thing I have ever heard Sakura!" Chiharu exclaimed drinking her milkshake. "But why don't you just call him."

She sighed "I don't have his number."

"You're not serious!" Chiharu said dramatically.

"I am. I've tried everything; he doesn't even have facebook, twitter...nothing. Its like he has completely disappeared off the grid, so now I have to go to Hong Kong, I owe it to him." Sakura stared at her ice-cold milkshake that still remained untouched.

"He was really cute. He suited you more than Yukito; Yukito was like a mentor...a priest guiding you through life."

She nodded agreeably "But Syaoran is passion and romance...and love." His name escaped breathlessly from her lips.

Chiharu looked at Sakura excitedly. "Sakura, you're in love." she smiled feeling happy for her friend.

"We have this connection." Sakura said in a dreamy tone "I miss him everyday. It's been a week now and all I do is think of him."

Chiharu turned to the side and opened her handbag. She took out her purse and took out cash "Here...to add to your savings."

Sakura looked at her surprised "I can't...I can't take your money."

"I will not take no for an answer. You are taking this money and you are going to have your movie script ending."

"Okay, thank you." Sakura said taking the money "thank you so much."

"Its okay, I was going to spend it on alcohol anyway." she took a sip of her milkshake "Have you asked your parents to sponsor you?"

"No." Sakura muttered "I haven't told them anything."

"You have to. You can ask them to give you more money and after a week, you will be able to go there."

"They have other expenses, I can't. It's been a rough month for then financially, they even contributed to my wedding."

"We can have fundraisers and wash cars."

Sakura just smiled. Chiharu had always been a hopeless romantic when no one was looking.

That evening when she returned home, she walked into the kitchen where her mother, Nadeshiko, making pasta "I know it's late but don't worry, I was out with Chiharu, we just had milkshake."

"You seem happier." she commented.

Sakura raised her shoulders "I'm just a little more hopeful now."

"Hopeful about what?"

Sakura did not reply.

"I know you ended your marriage Sakura and to be honest I don't understand why. Syaoran was a good guy, he was willing to do anything for you and you threw it away."

Sakura rolled her eyes "I know that Mum. I don't need to hear it from you."

"So you admit it; you made a mistake."

"Yes!" Sakura grunted. "How did you find out anyway?"

"You're annulment papers arrived today?" her mother placed her hands akimbo "So how are you going to fix this?"

"You read my mail?" she said angrily "Where is it?"

"It's on the counter."

She picked it up and marched out of the kitchen.

"Young lady, you just can't walk out of the room when I'm talking to you." she could hear her mother shouting behind her but she kept walking.

Nadeshiko followed her to her bedroom to find her sitting on her bed sobbing. She sat next to her

"Oh dear...I'm sorry." she kissed her forehead.

The documents were sitting on her lap. "Mum, I can't sign these." she said through the tears. Her tears dripped on the papers. "Does this mean it's completely over and there is nothing I can do about it?"

"Well, there is only one way of finding out. You need to find Syaoran and tell him how you feel."

"I don't have enough money to go to Hong Kong; it will take me a month to make the flight cost alone and there is accommodation and transport."

"I'll ask you're grandfather for a loan and by Friday you should be on your way."

Sakura hugged her.

"Just don't tell you're father where I got the money from. He will be angry if he finds out I asked my father for money."

Sakura nodded.

...

to be continued

A/N: Hi everyone. This is officially my fastest update to date :D, thank you for supporting the story through the year. The next chapter will be the final chapter. I'll try my best to make it good. I'm currently looking for a beta reader, so if anyone is interested PM me please. Thanks again!


	10. Love Confession

**I now pronounce you miserable**

**Chapter 10**

**Love confession**

"Board meeting after board meeting." Syaoran yawned dramatically while looking at the documents he was requested to analyse and give a critical objective opinion. With the heat that was brewing outside, concentrating was proving to be a challenge.

Meiling entered the break room; she always seemed to be free and she always seemed to know where to find him. Sometimes he wondered what her job was exactly.

"Tired? It's only 8 in the morning Syaoran. You still have a whole day ahead of you."

He heaved a sigh "I know. My future isn't looking so great right now, if this is what I will be doing for the rest of it."

"What do you want to do...get married again?" she teased him.

He raised his shoulders.

Meiling looked outside the window "It looks likes it's going to rain. I can see dark clouds." she turned around and looked at him "Do you want to know what I think?"

Syaoran stretched his arms "Not really, but I have a feeling you are going to tell me anyway."

Meiling walked across the room pretending to be thinking hard "I think, you have the whole world laid out in front of you but you don't know what to do with it. That's why the moment you fell in love you instantly thought in would be a good idea to get married because you thought marriage is the best way to get your feeling across."

"Can we not talk about it?" he moaned.

The door swung open and in walked in one of their middle-aged colleagues. Syaoran took a sip of his coffee and raised his eyes to look at him.

"Good morning you two; I see you decided to get a head start with the flirting." he said with a saucy chuckle.

Syaoran nearly chocked on his coffee. He cleared his throat and said defensively "We don't flirt, we bicker."

The man sighed "All the same. That's how my wife and I met."

"This not the case."

Meiling smirked "We have great chemistry. I've always told Syaoran that him and I have great chemistry."

Syaoran got out of his chair "I am leaving this conversation" he pointed a finger at Meiling and said "and you're engaged, remember."

...

"Come on, you've got to let me through." Sakura pleaded with wide eyes as she stood in the reception area of Li corp.

The hair she took hours to brush was now in shambles and frizzy from the rain that caught up with her. The cute white button up dress she had specifically picked for this occasion was soak and wet and she was well aware that everyone could see her white lace bra right through it. She was standing bare foot carrying her high heels in her hands. She had walked for two hours and she could not stand the pain in her feet any longer.

The receptionist rolled her eyes "You have no appointment; no one is expecting you and you look like a crazy person. I'm not letting you in." The receptionist was a young lady, who appeared to be in her early twenties with long wavy brown hair.

Sakura heaved a frustrated sigh "It took me hours to get here and I left my umbrella behind."

The receptionist gave her a scornful smirk "So what would be the purpose of your visit?"

"I'm here to make a love confession to Mr. Syaoran Li." after she said that, she immediately regretted it.

The receptionist laughed. She was malicious and Sakura could tell that she was enjoying this. Sakura leaned into the table "Please."

"You could be a stalker. Syaoran is kind of a big deal, you do know that right? He is the heir of this company; if you think I'm going to let some insane stalker in this building you've got it all wrong missy."

"I'm not a stalker." Sakura said defensively "I'm...his wife. I came all the way from Japan; I arrived in Hong Kong yesterday evening, slept for three hours, woke up at six, got lost in this huge city and how I'm here."

The receptionist placed her hand on her stomach and cackled. She laughed for a longer time than was necessary. A tear came to the corner of her eye and after more than a minute, she had to catch her breath.

"You're not his wife!" she said still laughing.

Sakura pouted "I am. We got married July this year."

The receptionist composed herself "Sure, if you're his wife then I am his mistress and I say get lost."

"I've got the documents to prove it." Sakura said confidently.

"Let me see them."

"They are not exactly with me." Sakura looked down playing with her fingers.

The receptionist shook her head "I feel sorry for girls like you. Even if you were his supposed wife, I wouldn't let you in. Apparently you broke his heart."

Sakura gave her a look of resentment.

"You know; if you are that desperate, you can always wait for him here."

"When does he come out?"

The receptionist took out a nail file "Five o'clock." she began filing her nails and humming a song.

Sakura looked at her wrist watch "But that's 7 hours from now."

The receptionist raised her shoulder "Not my problem."

Sakura took a step back. She could feel a piercing sting in her heart; perhaps this was karma's way of saying 'what goes around comes around Bitch.'

"Seven hours." she muttered residing to the seat in the waiting area. "I can do seven hours. I have to stand my ground."

She sat there and watched the time wall clock move very slowly and after two hours, her patience started growing thin. She tried to think of a way to get into the building but only ended dozing off.

Suddenly her eyes were open; the sound of heels clicking on the marble floor woke her up. She looked around to find that there were people leaving the office building. She looked up at the wall clock "5 o'clock" on the dot.

Sakura popped off the chair and rushed to the receptionist. "Is he gone?"

The receptionist raised her shoulders and refused to even look at Sakura.

As soon as she was about to beat herself up for falling asleep, the elevator doors opened and she heard Syaorans' voice. A nervous smile came across her face and she could feel her hands starting to shake and butterflies in her stomach.

He wore a grey suite that fitted his frame well. His hair was neatly combed and his face looked rugged as though he had skipped a few days of shaving. The first thing she noticed was that he was laughing and secondly, there was a woman standing next to him whom she assumed was the one responsible for his laughter and the glimmer in his eyes. The woman was simply beautiful. She had long black hair and distinctive eyes. Her skin was flawless and she wore a tight pencil skirt, a fitted red jacket and eight-inch heels.

Sakura starred for a moment until a little voice in her head told her to not let him see her. She turned her back to them and stood still.

"I will literally collapse if I have to sit through another board meeting." he said to the woman.

"I've never been invited to a board meeting."

"But you're an intern Meiling." he told her.

"Exactly my point. I've got an MBA and post graduate as are you but the difference is one day this company is going to be yours." she slid her hand around his forearm "I must say though, you turned out well Syaoran Li, when I knew you back then, you were a rebel with a cause. No one could tell you what to do and you wanted nothing to do with Li. Corp."

With those words, they left the building. Sakura could not move. She tightened the grip she had around her hand bag. She looked up at them as they walked away. She noticed that her hand was around his arm.

"You just missed him." the receptionist commented.

Sakura said nothing; she turned towards the door and started walking out. "He has already moved on. This whole trip was pointless." she thought. She slowly walked to the parking lot and sat on the pavement. She hugged her legs and shivered as a cold breeze blew her direction.

"It was all for nothing." she muttered burying her face in her knees.

The cars disappeared from the parking lot and as time went by, she found it more difficult to move. The image of the happy look on his face and the gorgeous woman continuously replayed itself in her mind. At this moment, she did know how she got to Li corp or how she was going to get back to the hotel she was staying. Tears stung her eyelids as she tried to convince herself to be strong.

"Ma'am, are you okay?" a kind familiar voice spoke to her.

She kept her head buried for awhile longer. If this was really Syaoran, then this was going to be the ultimate humiliation. She looked like a homeless woman.

She raised her head up.

Her vision was blurry at first because of the tears.

She blinked the teardrops away.

"Sakura?" Syaoran said surprised "Sakura...what are you doing here?"

She stared into his face and gradually stood up. She looked at him in awe taking a step back when he moved closer to her. She could not tell from his tone if he was happy or sad to see her; the only emotion she was able to read was surprised.

She lifted her hand over her eyes and wiped away the tear stains with her finger tips.

"What are you doing at Li. Corp?" he asked her in a stern and almost intimidating tone.

"I..." the words got stuck in her throat. She was not sure anymore if a love confession was appropriate. "I brought the annulment papers." she said automatically.

His eyes were fixed on her, as if he could see right through her.

"You could have just posted them to my attorney. The address was on the letter."

Sakura tried to keep her face levelled with his. She looked down for a moment and noticed that he was neither wearing his tie nor his jacket anymore. He had rolled up the sleeves of his shirt.

His intense chocolate eyes pierced through hers and he took a step towards her.

"You look lovely." he said sarcastically.

Sakura did not comment.

She had expected him to be a little more inquisitive about her presence than he was being.

Sakura thought of the woman he saw her with and she felt inadequate. She was having trouble understanding what Syaoran ever saw in her to begin with.

"So, explain to me again what you are doing at my office building."

"I came to see you." she was finally able to compose a proper sentence.

He smiled, almost arrogantly and nodded his head "That part is a little bit obvious." He did not take his eyes off of her for a moment.

She raised a shoulder "I wanted to see if you are doing fine and its' confirmed, you are okay." she said in a comedic tone. "You are working at this fancy place and that girlfriend of yours...wow."

He looked at her confused.

"Girlfriend?"

Sakura looked at the ground. "Yeah...or lover. I don't know. You two really get along."

He was quiet. He did not deny it. She wanted him to say it was not true, that she had miss-interpreted the nature of their relationship but still, nothing came out of his mouth.

He blinked for a moment and then he asked "Where is your boyfriend...the love of your life?" he sounded as though he was mocking her to some extent. "And how does he feel about this little visit you decided to pay me?"

She gave him a serious face. She wished he took her more seriously. Love confessions are not supposed to be this humiliating.

"We broke up." Sakura said coyly. "I'm going back home tomorrow anyway so...yeah...it was great seeing you again and all the best for the future." Sakura turned away and started to walk.

Before she could take a fourth step, he tightly grasped her wrist. "Don't go." his voice was hoarse and demanding.

She turned around; she did not want to face him. Nervous eyes stared back at him and she looked weak, vulnerable and delicate. She was like glass in his hands.

He forcefully pulled her into his arms. A gasp escaped her lips and her head found itself temporary attached to his chest and the sound of his heart beat.

He grabbed the back of her neck and wrapped his fingers in her tangled hair. He yanked her neck aside and buried his face in her neck. His body became her only source of heat and she felt her hand bag sliding out of her fingers and making a faint sound when it hit pavement.

"Do you want me?" he asked her breathlessly.

Sakura parted her lips. She withdrew from him , looked into his intense amber orbs and muttered a sincere "Yes "

"Then don't go." he begged her with desperate eyes.

"These past days have been..." he decided to hold back. It was her turn to speak up.

"I came all the way here to look into your eyes, even if it's for the last time. I just had to see you again." she held her hand to his face and touched it gently with her finger tips. "I want to tell you that I am sorry for being so blind." she took a deep breath "but I know how I feel about you now and I know you have a girlfriend but..."

He sniggered "Meiling is not my girlfriend. She is a childhood friend."

"Oh." she took a sigh of relief.

"Why did you break up with your boyfriend? You said he knew you more than anyone and you have history together."

"I realised that I don't love him in that way."

He pushed the bangs of her hair away from her face.

"I love you so much Syaoran...so much." she said in a half whisper.

"I love you too." he breathed down her neck.

Their heads drew closer and their eyes slowly closed. His lips gently pushed against hers. She immediately felt a surge of Goosebumps invade her entire body. Her knees felt weak and she lost herself entirely in his embrace. The kiss was gentle, loving, patient.

He let her go for a moment. Suddenly her stomach rumbled. Embarrassed, Sakura turned her head away from him.

He took her hand and said "Let's go."

Sakura smiled "Where?"

"Go get food and we will just have to see after that."

She bit her lower lip and flushed coyly and then picked up her bag from the ground.

"What are you doing here anyway, didn't you leave the office just an hour ago."

"I came back to get my phone, it turned out I forgot it on my desk." he told her "Why didn't you come visit me up stairs."

"The receptionist was really mean."

He laughed.

"She practically called me a stalker."

"You kind of are." he said light-heartedly. "How on earth did you find me?"

"Li Corp Hong Kong...it doesn't take a genius to figure it out and...The internet did help too."

"I appreciate the effort." he said tightening his grip around her soft hands.

"Wait." Sakura said stopping in her tracks.

He stopped walking.

She fumbled in her hand bag for a moment. She took out an envelope and held it up "I don't know how you still feel about our marriage but...I'm not signing these."

He took the envelope from her hand and tore it up "I still haven't signed mine. I didn't want to. Signing it meant letting you go and I don't ever want to do that."

She beamed and he hugged her carrying her in his arms "Looks like you're stuck with me Mrs. Li."

"I wouldn't have it any other way."

...

**The End**


	11. Epilogue Part 1

**A/N: Hi everyone, I've written an epilogue. So many of you were asking me to and I couldn't help it. The ideas just kept on coming and I enjoy writing this story. Enjoy!**

**I now pronounce you miserable**

**Epilogue**

**Part 1**

It had been another long hard day for Sakura and Syaoran. Sakura had spent all day on the University Campus studying for her final exam which she wrote that afternoon and Syaoran had been busy with work at the Tokyo branch of . For over three weeks now, they rarely went to bed at the same time. Tonight was no different. Sakura had arrived home late in the evening that day; she cooked dinner and waited for Syaoran to come home. When she called him he insisted that she should not stay up and wait for him and that he was going to be very late.

At 12:00 pm, Syaoran trudged up the stairs and glanced out the window on what was a very nice late summers evening. This had been the longest summer yet, it was nearly the end of September and yet the heat seemed to be intensifying, Sakura would usually go on about how the world was ending and that all of the signs were there, of course she was not serious but she enjoyed making a debate of it.

He put the key into the lock of apartment 23, the one bedroom apartment that he and Sakura shared in the outskirts of Tokyo. It was nothing fancy; Sakura picked it out. She was not into the modern day futuristic apartment. All she wanted was a place that looked like a home and their apartment was no exception. It was warm and inviting with picture frames on the wall and flower vases. He loved everything about it. At the terrace there were flower pots with flowers that Sakura was taking care of. The kitchen had light yellow wall paper and wooden cupboards that created a comfortable atmosphere.

Syaoran was looking forward to his bed. He looked forward to forgetting about the stress that had him by the neck and most of all, he looked forward to the vision of his beautiful wife in that bed. The room was dark and cooler that the rest of the apartment which was nice. He closed the door, making sure to hold the lock so as to not wake Sakura, who he thought must have been asleep for more than 3 hours now. He looked around the darkness, just starting to make shapes out as his eyes adjusted to the darkness. Sakura had left the curtains slightly ajar which let through a slither of moonlight that beamed down unto her auburn hair. She was curled into the covers facing away from Syaoran and he could just make out the light breath of what must be a dream. Her slender frame rose and fell ever so slightly with each breath as she dreamt.

Syaoran thought for what must have been the millionth time how lucky he was to come home to such an amazing woman. He could confidently say that she was the only thing that was right in his life.

He wished she was awake, he missed her smile and her mischievous grin when she was up to something; he missed all the little things that made him fall in love with her to begin with. It had been awhile since they got as much as a whole day to themselves and he could not help but feel as though it was his entire fault. He was not being the man or the husband he wanted to be for her, especially in the past four days.

Syaoran made his way over to the bed and pulled his navy blue tie to loosen it. He slid his shoes off and started to undo the buttons of his light blue shirt, all the time admiring the wisp of Sakura's auburn hair shimmering in the moonlight. He pulled his trousers and socks off, leaving nothing on but his boxers and then he slid in-between the cool covers. He set his alarm clock and bent over to kiss Sakura goodnight on the forehead. He noticed that it was warmer than usual; he wondered what she was dreaming about as his hand reached around her delicate waist.

Instead of feeling the usual cotton of her pyjama top, he felt something smoother and warmer...her bare skin. His hands moved up her stomach and she giggled.

"Syaoran, that tickles." She said reaching out for the hand that was bringing out that reaction in her.

"You're not asleep at all." he said breathing down her neck.

She shook her head "I can't sleep when I'm worried about you."

He grinned at her. "Are you naked?"

Sakura nodded "Yes...and very turned on right now."

He planted a soft kiss on her neck. Sakura let out a low deep moan and shifted her body sideways, freeing up her left hand underneath her body between her and Syaoran. Sakura pressed her naked frame against him. She pulled Syaoran in close to kiss her. Her kiss was warm and passionate and not a hint of sleep or tiredness in it.

She started tampering with his boxers, pulling them down as he kissed her. He broke the kiss and said "You are becoming a little minx." his deep masculine voice made her even more impatient and her appetite for him to make love to her grew stronger.

...

Syaoran and Sakura nuzzled into each others arms, both still breathing deeply and beaming from what had just happened between them.

"I don't think I'll ever get used to this." he said kissing her damp forehead.

"Wow." Sakura said her breath on his face.

As their breathing slowly got back to normal, Sakura ran a hand through his hair and said softly "This is the latest you've come home. Is everything fine?"

He kissed the tip of her nose "You worry too much about me."

She raised her shoulders "I can't help it."

A brief moment of silence passed before Syaoran suddenly said "I'm sorry." In a serious tone "This is not what you expected when you decided to stay married to me."

She shook her head "I understand...I can never be angry at you for that. I know you're trying your best to make sure I live a happy life."

"How was your exam? How does it feel to be officially finished with University?" he asked.

However she did not reply; she was already fast asleep. He stroked her cheek gently before drifting off to sleep as well.

...

Sakura was awoken by whispers; she turned to the side to find Syaoran on his cell phone. She stretched her head out from under the thin cotton sheets to look at the time on the alarm clock.

"Four o'clock." she mumbled dropping her head back unto the pillow.

He ended the call and quickly got out of bed.

Sakura propped up on her elbows and observed him with half closed eyes.

"Where are you going so early?" she asked him.

"Work." he said to her "Go back to sleep."

"Its too late, I'm already wide awake." Sakura said widening her eyes. She yawned and sat up; he was picking out a suite from the closet.

"I'm just going to shower quickly and then I'll be out."

Sakura was confused; he suddenly disappeared off into the bathroom. She sluggishly got out of bed. Her body felt tired and weak yet she had to force herself to get up. She quickly put on her lacy black underwear and a white t-shirt. She then peeked through the bathroom door. There was steam everywhere "I'll make you breakfast." the only thing she could see was his silohuet.

"Thanks." he said.

Sakura quickly prepared toast with butter and a cup of coffee for him. Seeing that he was in such a hurry, she figured a light break fast was suitable.

He walked into the kitchen all dressed up in a black suite and white shirt. However, his hair was still in a mess and he did not shave again. He was carried his jacket over his shoulder. He picked up one slice of toast with his hand.

"What's going on at your work place? It seems like..." he cut her off when he kissed her lips and then said "I'll try to be earlier today."

As he rushed out of the door Sakura yelled "Your coffee...your tie is skew, your hair is..." As soon as he disappeared out the door, she picked up the slice of toast and bit the edge. She walked over into the living room and grabbed the remote control with her left hand. Throwing herself on the couch, she sat back and watched a film she had suddenly found.

Seven o'clock, after taking a shower and cleaning up, she had an unexpected visit from a friend, Naoko. Naoko was a childhood friend and ex roommate. Sakura was pleased to see her, she needed the company. However, Naoko was rare bread, a sarcastic sadist with a vulgar vocabulary and a fetish for all things black. She had short brown hair and wore glasses and today she was wearing a black top with black skinny jeans and black ballet pumps. Throughout the time she knew her, Naoko had transformed from bookworm, to bookworm emo to bookworm Goth and now she was pretty much an opinionated woman that couldn't care less about what people thought.

She threw her black satchel on the couch while Sakura closed the door behind her.

"Where is your husband?" she asked throwing herself on the couch. She spoke in her usual calm mellow tone.

Sakura sat on the opposite arm chair "At work."

"Careful Sakura, if you become too comfortable with this life you are currently living, you just might end up being a housewife."

"Give me a break; I just finished my exams yesterday." Sakura pouted.

Naoko sat up "Oh yeah, how was PSY410, the toughest course ever, in your words...not mine."

Sakura kept her eyes fixed on the television screen as she crossed her legs. "It was okay. I had a lot of past papers."

"I'm surprised you managed to study with your man candy staying with you."

"He's been very busy lately."

Naoko smiled "So you guys haven't been at it like rabbits anymore."

Sakura looked at Naoko her cheeks crimson "You sure love to talk about sex."

Naoko smiled a little at her "And you still blush every time sex comes up." she teased her "You're not a kid anymore Sakura. Everyone knows you two are doing the nasty, you're my only female friend but even after getting married, you are still reserved." she looked at Sakura and grinned "I enjoy talking about philosophy, politics, religion and sex...sew me."

"What do you want me to tell you?" Sakura's face was still bright red.

"I don't know...does he have any weird sexual fantasy, SNM? a foot fetish."

"No. Eww that's gross." Sakura replied briskly swallowing a look of repulsion.

Naoko rolled her eyes "It's not gross. I've got leather, I've got whips...I can borrow you any time. It can be fun you know."

Sakura turned her face to Naoko and said "No...You pervert."

Naoko cackled. When Naoko laughed, it she sounded like a mad scientist.

They quietly watched the program for a moment then Naoko said.

"I don't think Syaoran really likes me."

Sakura laughed a little.

"Why are you laughing?" Naoko enquired sitting up.

Sakura raised her shoulders "Its nothing."

"He said something about me didn't he? He hates me! I knew it!"

"What did you expect after you went on and on about how marriage is a dying institution that is for the poorly educated. You're viewpoints have a way of offending people, if you haven't picked up on that yet."

She pushed the bangs of her hair behind her ear.

"I am a free independent woman who does not circum to expectations of society and most men don't like that. He should have said it to my face if he did not like me. Your husband is spineless."

Sakura shook her head "I love you Naoko but sometimes..." Sakura sighed "I already know everything about you, but he doesn't. What ever happened to that cute nerd from high school?" Sakura giggled randomly and then said "Syaoran said that you would make a nice lesbian."

Naokos' jaw dropped "That is sexist; a woman speaks her mind about men, marriage and sex that makes her a lesbian?"

Sakura stood up "Chill, he didn't say you are a lesbian, he said you would make a great lesbian." she headed towards the kitchen area "Do you want some coffee."

"Sure." Naoko said.

"Speak of the devil, you're husband is on TV."

Sakura ran into the room with a cup of coffee. She stopped in her tracks and looked at the TV "Raise the volume."

Naoko did as asked. Syaoran was on the television screen for a moment before the anchor man came back on saying "It has been reported that the bankruptcy of Li. Corp was the result of serveral bad investments and illegal pyramid schemes. The company has lost millions in shares and has left over 500 people in Japan alone unemployed."

Sakura slowly sat next to Naoko watching attentively.

"That's Syaoran's family company." she said softly "Bankrupt."

Naoko looked at Sakura "Wait...you do know that has been in financial turmoil for the past six months right? Of course they tried to cover it up but after the branch in Korea and Singapore was shut down, it was obvious that Japan was next. In a month or so, the company might not even exist anymore. They are insolvent. What the company is trying to do is reimburse its investors and pay its creditors."

"How do you know all this?"

"I watch the local business news and read business journals. Sakura, don't you take any interest in your husbands company? or in his occupation?"

"I ask him but he always says that things are hectic but it's nothing that can't be fixed. He doesn't get into details." She put her Mickey Mouse coffee mug on the coffee table "Why didn't he tell me? Why didn't you tell me?"

"I just didn't want to bring up a topic that involves your husband's money; I was thinking that it is something you two already talked about it."

"No! This is a big deal." Sakura said "It's massive." Sakura finally managed to peel her eyes off the television screen.

Naoko stood up "I'm sorry Sakura." she picked up her satchel bag "I have to go. I have an exam in an hour. Good luck okay."

Sakura just nodded and muttered "You too."

...

That evening, Sakura sat in the living room waiting impatiently for Syaoran. She had practiced a thousand times in the mirror how she was going to bring up the subject. She was to remain calm, firm and assertive at all times. She was not going to fall for his seductive glances and pleading face.

She crossed her legs and nervously took a deep breath "This is it...our first fight." she had tried calling him all day but his phone was off.

The door opened, Sakura put on her mean look and folded her hands over her chest.

He looked at her and she glared at him. A drop of sweat came to his forehead.

"How was work?" she asked "You're earlier today...have you sorted everything out with the lawyers?"

He closed the door and placed his briefcase on the floor. "I meant to tell you."

"Yeah Syaoran?" she asked sarcastically "When were you planning on telling me?" She managed to keep a calm tone.

"Today...right now actually." he said calmly.

She took a deep breath "How bad is it?"

He tucked his hands in the pockets of his trousers "Pretty bad." Syaoran peeled off his jacket and placed it on the arm of the chair. He heaved a sigh and said "We can't afford to live here anymore."

She nodded "You should have told me."

He resided next to her "I know. Things have been so bad at work and I wanted our home to be a place of comfort." He spoke in his usual deep, caring and cool tone.

"The whole world seems to know but me."

He was quiet for a moment and then he said to her "Listen, this thing...what it means is that I won't be able to provide for you in awhile, I won't be able to take care of you Sakura. As soon as the lawyers are done sequestrating the entire estate, I'm going to loose everything including money from my inheritance just so my father doesn't go to jail. I don't even know how long it will be before I can work again."

She clenched her fists and placed her hands to her side. She looked at him with teary eyes "I'm your wife, when I married you I married your problems, your insecurities and unfortunately your pride too."

He reached out his hand to touch her face "I'm sorry that I hurt you. It's not what I wanted."

"What are we going to do?"

He raised his shoulders and shrugged.

Sakura abruptly stood up.

"Where are you going?" he turned his head to look at her.

"I'm going to take a bath, I need to clear my thoughts and calmly get my head around all this."

...

Sakura sat in the bath tub. Her hair was in a high ponytail and she had lit a few candles and dimmed the lights. She filled the tub with hot water and citrus bubble bath. She tried to think of what they were going to do next.

She had to admit, she had become too comfortable after moving in with Syaoran. She had completely stopped looking for jobs and she had quit her job as a waitress.

Syaoran entered the bathroom.

Sakura slightly raised her head and turned her head away "Idi—iot" she muttered.

He entered the bathroom "I deserve that." he said sheepishly.

Sakura kept quiet, her face still away from him.

"It smells nice in here." he said in a poor attempt to get her to talk to him.

He walked further in, put down the toilet seat and sat on it. He stayed quiet though.

Sakura quickly grew tired of the silence. She turned around to look at him and she said "Why do you do that?"

"Do what?" he raised his eyebrows.

"Why do you manage to always have the upper hand in this relationship?" Sakura fumed. "You play the role of victim and I'm made to feel guilty."

He kept a fixed eye on her and then his eyes shifted to her bare perky breasts "I think you have the upper hand dear."

Sakura made a noise with her mouth that signified how angry she was. She placed her hands over her breasts and asked "How long do we have to stay here."

"Two weeks." he said.

Sakura sighed and rested her head back and closed her eyes. "I can take care of myself...I've been doing it for 23 years now."

He was silent. He knew this, he knew Sakura was independent. It was stupid to think that she would walk away if she found out about everything. He walked over to the bath tub and stooped down to her level, literally. He looked at her. Sakura slowly opened her eyes.

"I don't want to loose you because of this."

She sat up "You won't."

"Promise?"

Sakura smirked and splashed water in his face "Promise." she giggled.

He held his gaze and said "I'm sorry."

"Get in here." she said in a flirty mischievous tone.

He laughed and got into the tub.

"No! Not with your clothes on!" Sakura yelped still giggling.

He splashed water in her face.

"No Syaoran!" she squealed and he chuckled with naughty grin while sitting down.

...

After having a playful time in the bath, they lay on the bed on their backs in their bath robes.

"I'm going to Hong Kong tomorrow; I'll be back in tow days."

Sakura turned to look at him "Why?"

"Its' the main branch; I have to meet up with my family to discuss the next step. I'll also meet up with lawyers."

Sakura sat up and moved closer to him "Do you have to go?"

He nodded. "Yeah."

As the sat there, Sakura started to see how much it was affecting him. She did not consider his feelings for a moment. She reached out and touched his hand "I'm sorry about this."

He gave her a brooding smile "Thanks. It's not fair you know. I've only been working for the company for 3 months and I'm going down with it. I knew it was in trouble but it's only recently I got to see how bad things really are. "

"You'll pull through, I just know it." she said calmly. She sat up and said "Is Meiling going to be there?"

He nodded "Yeah, she does work at the Hong Kong branch."

Sakura sighed and he climbed up on top of her. She touched his collar bone with the tip of her index finger playfully and said "oh." innocently.

"You're not jealous are you?"

She shook her head "No. She just likes you too much. It can get really old."

"She's got nothing on you." he said confidently and gave her a short dry kiss. "You're so cute when you're jealous."

"I wouldn't call it jealousy. I barely know the woman." she slightly lifted her face "Its not that I hate her or anything, I just hope that the next time she is on her period she is in a tank full of sharks." she didn't mean it but she loved the thought of it.

Syaoran just smirked. "You're even cute when you're trying to be mean. I can never take you seriously."

Her mind replayed the one time she meet Meiling; self-proclaimed perfect woman. She made no hesitation in making sure Sakura knows that Syaoran was hers first. That Syaoran lost his virginity to her and they had more history. The idea of Syaoran going to China left a bad taste in her mouth.

"If push comes to shove, we can move in with my parents temporarily."

"I hope it doesn't come to that."

...

To be continued


End file.
